Team 7: Revolution!
by Everyone Like Me
Summary: Alone, we were weak. United, we grew strong. We will become legend. This team wants to be the best, and nothing will stop them from reaching that goal. But with allies and enemies like these, it won't be easy. Follow the adventures of the new Team 7.
1. New Kids on the Block

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First off, I'd like to say that I don't own ANY character that appears in this story! Naruto belongs to Kishimoto and Mayu belongs to TFK-fan118!

Second, you probably won't get this unless you read _My Life as Sakura Haruno_ by TFKfan-118, so go check it out before you read this! … or you'll probably be confused… -.-

The reason I wanted to do this is because I was so inspired by TFK-fan118. The My Life as... series was so great and I really hope TFK-fan118 finishes the third installment of that series.

This is basically a "What If…?" type of story. How would the story change if Mayu had stuck around for the Chuunin Exams? I wanted to find out, but the story was stopped right before the chuunin exams started. So I decided to try to answer that question. I really, really hope it's as funny and entertaining as the original.

BTW: I do have TFK-fan118's permission to you're her characters, so don't go telling on me. Actually, TFK-fan118 helped me out a bit with this chapter.

Anywho, on with the chapter!

* * *

"I'm sorry... I didn't know you cared," Mayu whispered.

"I don't... idiot," Sasuke said.

"Whatever... bird brain," Mayu muttered, and then her eyes closed.

"M-Mayu...! S-Stop playing around!" Sasuke shouted. "Open your eyes!"

Because of his shouting, several heads turned in his direction; Naruto woke and looked over as well. Suddenly, Mayu/Sakura's chest stopped moving completely, causing Sasuke's eyes to widen. "Sasuke...! What happened to Sakura-chan?!" Sasuke hadn't even noticed that Naruto was right next to him.

"You... bastard!" Sasuke muttered as he stood with Sakura's body in his arms. "I... I won't let you live!"

"S-Sasuke! She's not dead... is she?" Naruto asked.

He didn't answer, instead he handed Sakura's body to Naruto. "I'll take care of him," Sasuke proclaimed. "I'll make him pay for what he did to her!" Haku watched on in mild surprise.

_Mmm... this is interesting. His chakra level has increased_.

"I see... so she was your precious person?" he said out loud. Without a word, Sasuke ran towards Haku with extreme speed, his Sharingan was activated. Haku didn't have his jutsu out anymore, so he couldn't dodge Sasuke's rapid punches; Haku tried attacking, but in Sasuke's eyes, Haku was just too slow.

A kick to the face sent Haku flying across the bridge. A flying fifteen-year-old caught Kakashi as well as Zabuza off guard, so they both jumped out of the way. Haku crashed into the bridge builder. Kakashi stared at his student in amazement as he rushed by him to finish his assault on Haku. _"What has happened to him?"_ he thought, eyes wide in shock. _"It's like he's received a power boost!"_ That's when his eyes landed on Naruto; his eyes widen even more. "S-Sakura...?"

He watched as Naruto sat Sakura's body on the ground, and then dashed over to the two. Naruto was still staring at Sakura's body in total shock. "T-This wasn't supposed t-t-to happen..." he muttered. "Sakura-chan wasn't supposed to..." Kakashi quickly glanced at Sakura's body and frown. He kneeled down, and then flicked her nose.

"Itai...! What the--hey!" the girl suddenly sat up. "Kakashi-san, Naruto? Where's Haku?!"

"SAKURA-CHAN! YOU'RE ALRIGHT!" Naruto shouted at the top of his lungs. Meanwhile, Sasuke had heard his teammate's shout and stopped mid-punch, his grip on Haku clothes loosened a little. He turned his head a little to see Sakura punching Naruto in the head for shouting.

"She's okay..." Sasuke muttered.

"Of course... she is," Haku panted. Sasuke turned back to Haku and glared. "I did not wish to kill her. I only wished to stop her from using my ability."

Sasuke's face returned to normal, and then he dropped Haku to the ground. "Your death would be pointless..." he muttered, and then ran over to his team.

"My death would be pointless...?" Haku muttered as he sat up, frowning; his mask had already been broken by Sasuke's fist. He watched as Sasuke wrapped his arms around Sakura, the girl appeared to be embarrassed, and then she pushed Sasuke away, muttering something. Haku couldn't hear what she said. Sasuke crossed his arms and looked away, almost equally embarrassed. "Pointless...?"

"Haku..." a deep voice caused the young boy to jump slightly.

"Zabuza-san!" Haku exclaimed. "I'm sorry... I've failed you..."

"I'm disappointed in you, Zabuza," a voice made everyone's head to turn to see Gatou and all of his men. The fog had let up, so everyone could see.

"Gatou, why are you here?" Zabuza asked, turning to face the man. Blood ran down his arms from his fight with Kakashi. "And what's with all these men?"

"Sorry, Zabuza, but... I'm going to have to kill you and that brat of yours," Gatou said.

"What?" Zabuza couldn't believe what he had just heard; he narrowed his eyes. "Then that means... I have no reason to go after Tazuna."

"I guess it will be easier to kill you now that you're injured quite a bit!" Gatou said, and then pointed his cane. "Get 'em boys!" Zabuza growled when Gatou's men began charging.

He picked up his zanbato, and then charged at the men. Some of them stopped in fear, but were quickly sliced in half by Zabuza's deadly weapon. He moved towards Gatou, slashing through anyone who dared get in his way. Zabuza never lost his nerves in his arms in his fight with Kakashi, so he moved through the henchmen like a bowling ball through pins. He punch, kicked, slashed, and head-butted his way through, never slowing down his speed. When Zabuza finally reached Gatou, who had back up to the edge of the bridge, he cut at Gatou, causing him to fall over the edge. Zabuza slowly turned, and then began walking back towards Haku; the rest of Gatou's men made a way for him because they were still afraid.

Team 7 watched Zabuza's actions intently. "Haku," he began, narrowing his eyes.

"Yes, Zabuza-san?" Haku asked, looking up.

"Live your life according to you."

Haku's eyes widen at his companion's words. "What?!" he asked. "B-But my life belongs to you! My purpose is to serve _you_!"

Zabuza sighed, and then closed his eyes. "No, that is not your purpose," he said. "Do not be a tool to me or to anyone. I will try to the same." He then opened his eyes to see Haku giving him a confused look. "It is best if we go our separate ways, but I will visit... I promise you," Zabuza said, and then disappeared in a swirl of water.

"Zabuza-san...!" Haku exclaimed, tears fell from his eyes. "Is this really what you want from me?"

Mayu watched all of this happening in surprise. She stood, staring at Haku's back. Not that she wasn't happy about these turn of events, but didn't the ice user die? Her lips twitched a bit as she walked forward. _"Kishimoto-sama is going to maim me when and if he finds out…"_ she thought as she continued to move towards Haku. Her teammates gazed at her retreating in confusion. _"Oh well… if I've tweaked the plot already, mind as well mess it up entirely."_

Upon reaching Haku, she heard him saying something under his breath. "How am I—what do I do now?"

"Haku…" Mayu spoke. The older boy turned his head sharply to see green eyes staring back at him; there was a hint of pity in those green orbs. Haku slowly turned his head back, eyes trained on the ground. "You… You could come with us. Back to Konoha, I mean."

"NANI…?!"

Mayu mentally sighed when she heard Naruto's shout of disbelief. The orange-clad ninja rushed over to the two. "Naruto, you don't have to be so loud all the time," the girl groaned, rubbing her head.

"B-B-But Sakura-chan…! He's—He tried to kill you!" Naruto pointed out.

"You couldn't have forgotten that so quickly," Sasuke, who had seemed to appear out of nowhere, said. Mayu just at his sudden emergence, and then glared at him.

"He didn't _try_ to kill me," Mayu responded, huffing a bit as she crossed her arms. "Besides, I'm fine, aren't I?"

"That's not the point Ma—Sakura!" Sasuke almost shouted. Mayu only stuck her tongue out.

"Gomen… I must decline," Haku finally stood.

"Demo…?" Mayu uncrossed her arms. The three younger ninja watched the ice user.

"I simply cannot do that," Haku answered.

A burst of cold air hit the three genin, causing them to shield their eyes. It honestly felt like they were in a blizzard. When the wind stopped whipping at their skin, the three remove their arms from face. Haku had disappeared. "Well, he didn't have to leave like that!" Mayu shouted to the heavens. "I'm cold as hell now!"

"Cold as hell…?" Sasuke repeated. "You do realize that that is an oxymoron, right?"

"Shut up, Sasuke, nobody asked _you_!"

Hands clamped around both Mayu and Sasuke's heads. "Now, now, you two," Kakashi began. He patted their heads as if they were pets, causing the two to glower.

"Kakashi-sensei… if that guy had accepted Sakura-chan's offer… could he really come with us back to the village?" Naruto asked, staring up at his teacher.

"Hm… I suppose that he could," Kakashi answered, removing his hands from the heads of his two students. "But it would be up to the Hokage if he could stay."

"Well, that sucks! I invited without really thinking about that," Mayu commented.

"Baka…" Sasuke almost rolled his eyes.

"Shut up, bird brain…!"

"Don't start again, you two," Kakashi said. "Our mission is now complete, seeing as how Zabuza and Haku are no longer a threat."

"Aren't you forgetting something?" a random henchman yelled. Team 7 looked towards the rest of Gatou's men; the ones who weren't killed or injured by Zabuza, that is.

"Oh, I forgot about them," Mayu muttered, nonchalantly. The rest of the team nodded in agreement. Several henchmen blanched at their uncaring expressions.

"H-Hey, don't ignore us!" another henchman exclaimed, throwing up his hand as if he were proving something.

"Yeah…! Who's gonna pay us for our hard work when Gatou's dead?!"

"You honestly don't expect _us_ to pay you," Mayu shrugged. "Ninja don't get paid! We're broke!" Kakashi bopped on her the head.

"We'll just have to force it outta ya!"

"But she just said…" Naruto muttered.

"READY, MEN?!"

"Yeah!"

"I can't hear you!"

"YEAH!"

Mayu slapped her forehead with her palm. _"No wonder they don't have names,"_ she thought, rolling her eyes.

"CHAR-"

"I don't think so," a small voice interrupted. Although it was small, it seemed to echo throughout the area. Team 7 turned their backs to the mob of henchmen to see another mob, but this mob was full of villagers. This crowd seemed to be twice as big as Gatou's henchmen. Inari, the client's grandson, was in front with a crossbow in his hands.

"Look who finally showed up!" Naruto exclaimed with a grin. The henchmen looked on at the number of villagers with weapons in their hands. They definitely outnumbered them by at least a hundred.

"Uh… RETREAT!" one of them said, and then ran in the opposite direction. Sweat drops glided down the heads of Team 7 as they watched the henchmen leave.

"What a bunch of cowards," Naruto commented.

That's when the villagers started cheering. Gatou was gone and so were his thugs. The village could finally be at peace again. And that caused for celebration! "_Yay_…! They did it without doing _anything_!" Mayu cheered, throwing her arms in the air. Luckily, the villagers didn't hear her.

"Quit it with the commentary already," Sasuke muttered, rolling his eyes.

* * *

The Zabuza saga may be over… The threat may have come to an end… However, when we complete these normal D-rank missions… it's only a matter of time before a new threat comes to pass. As Squad 7, Naruto, Sasuke, and I must band together to face our toughest of foes. The next saga is about to begin! I can feel it in my bones—er… Sakura's bones!

I tightened by headband around my forehead. Today, I styled Sakura's hair in a low ponytail, instead of a long braid. Yeah, I was feeling pretty lazy today, even with the upcoming arc. "I'm off…!" I called over my shoulder as I walked out of the house.

"Be careful, Sakura!" her mother called after me.

Although I did get used to being called that, I still glowered. I didn't like being called Sakura. It was kinda like an insult! Anyway, I walked down the street. Our meeting place is supposed to be at the little red bridge. Since it was so close to where I live, I'd probably get there first. Well, that's what I initially thought! Imagine my surprise when I saw Sasuke leaning on the red railing, gazing down at the water below.

I purposely walked a little faster towards the bridge. "Hey, Sasuke…!" I exclaimed with a smile. He turned to me with a blank expression. Despite the look he gave me, I continued my happy feeling. But then he just turned away, without saying anything at all! My felt my smile crack and my eye twitch. "Well, good morning to you, too!" I grumbled. What crawled up his butt this today?!

I turned by back on him. Actually, this isn't the first time. He's been ignoring me since we left the Land of Waves. Sure, he ignores everyone, but it's like I've had the worst treatment compared to Kakashi and Naruto! This pisses me off! _"Why is he mad at me? What the heck did I do?" _I thought, closing my eyes. I felt my eyebrow twitch as I continued to ponder Sasuke's current attitude towards me. The more I thought about it, the angrier I got. _"Fine…! If he wants to act like a jackass then I won't pay attention to him either!"_

Fast-paced footsteps suddenly caught my ears. I looked towards the sound. And who do I see running towards us…? Uzumaki Naruto, of course. Well, it definitely wasn't Kakashi. He's always late. "Ohayo, Sakura-chan…!" he told me with a cheerful grin and wave.

"Go jump in a river!" I snapped, turning my back to him. I crossed my arms and glared at the ground. I'm actually surprised that came from my mouth. I'm usually nice to Naruto… when he's not being an idiot.

"Nani…?" I could actually hear the cheerfulness leave his voice. I instantly felt guilty. I turned to Naruto, who looked as though he'd been kicked. His shoulders were sagged and everything.

"Gomen, Naruto…" I said slowly. He looked up and I walked towards. "I didn't mean to kill your cheery mood. In all honesty," I glanced at Sasuke. Naruto always looked towards Sasuke in question. "I wanted to push the Uchiha in a river." And push him I did! Man, I wish I had a camera at that exact moment.

Sasuke went flying over the banister and into the water below. As he went down, I saw that his arms were flailing about as if he were trying to fly. _Ha_! I hope it's extremely cold down there! Naruto and I both peered down at the, now wet, Sasuke. Naruto guffawed as he clutched his belly with one hand. The other hand was pointing a finger at our glaring teammate. I gave him a smug grin as he stood.

"Why the hell did you do that?!" he almost growled at me.

"_Humph_… A ninja should always be prepared for an attack, unsuspecting or not," I told him, never losing my grin.

"I shouldn't have to expect an attack from my own teammates! You stupid cocoon!" he shouted.

"Oh, so _now_ we're teammates?!" I shouted back. "AND WHO THE HELL ARE YOU CALLING COCOON?!" I probably had giant white circles for eyes right now.

"Who the hell do you think I'm calling that, huh, _cocoon girl_...?!"

"_Grrr_…! That's it!" I grumbled.

I jumped over the railing and onto Sasuke. He looked as if he wasn't expecting me to do that, so I crashed into him, taking us both down. Unfortunately, Sasuke quickly became the one on top. Well, there's no way I was giving him time to gloat! I flipped him over me, using my legs to do so.

I'm not sure how long we were going at it like this, tossing and turning, I mean, but someone finally pushed us apart. I panted lightly as I glared at the soaking wet Uchiha. In turn, he was glaring at me as well. Actually, I'm pretty much soaked, too. "Perhaps you two save some of this animosity for missions," Kakashi's voice caused me to look up. "You shouldn't fight one another."

"He/She started it!" it seemed that both of us exclaimed while pointing. "Oh, grow up, Sasuke! Quit being so childish…!" I lowered my finger and turned away, feeling as though I was the bigger person.

"You don't have room to talk at all," Sasuke response was quick; it made me frown.

"Why are you two behaving this way?" Kakashi asked. "I expect sort of behavior from Naruto-"

"HEY!"

"-Not you two," Kakashi finished, ignoring the shout from Naruto.

"It's not my fault _she's_ PMSing," Sasuke sneered, turning his head away. I flush in slight embarrassment. How did Sasuke even know about that?!

"Why, you lil…!" Kakashi grabbed me again before I could tackle him.

"Stop that, Sakura. You both are wet enough as it is," Kakashi reprimanded. I huffed indignantly. "Recently, all you two do is fight when you come into contact with each other. I didn't say anything before because it was never physical." He sighed heavily. "When we you learn the concept of teamwork?"

"Whatever…!" I grumbled, swatting Kakashi's hand away.

I walked up the side of the bridge and landed near Naruto. He looked at me like had grown an extra head. I can understand this because it's not every day that a girl my age would go attacking a hottie (bleh!) like Sasuke. _"That bastard can go to hell for all I care!" _I hissed in thought as I shook the water off me. Yeah, I have this weird thing about how I remove water if I don't have a towel. My mom said that I looked similar to a dog when I do it. _I_ don't think so!

Kakashi and teme landed on the bridge after I was finished. Sasuke glared at me and I glared right back. Hearing Kakashi sigh, I turned to face him. "So what's the mission for today, sensei?" I questioned, totally ignoring the look of disbelief he was giving me.

"Yeah! Yeah! What's the next mission?!" Naruto was clearly excited about getting a new mission. "Come on! No more of that dumb beginner stuff! I want a really mission! A mission where I can show what I'm really made of!"

I stopped listening at that point. It's a little annoying whenever Naruto gets like this. Seriously, I could feel the heat of excitement practically radiating off the guy! My eyes drifted back to the loner of the group, who was staring off into space. He must have felt my eyes on him because he looked towards me. After that, it didn't take very long for our battle of glares to begin again.

"Still PMSing, I see," he muttered.

**Inner Mayu: I'll show you PMSing, freak!**

* * *

After completing tedious missions—chores—we walked. Sasuke and I were carrying Naruto. I mentally sighed. How could someone get a black eye, fall down a waterfall, and nearly become barbequed all in one day? But then again, this is Naruto I'm talking about. He just _had_ to pull all the plants and pick the biggest dog. Surprising, the dog was unhurt. I shook my head and sighed out loud.

"Naruto, I don't understand why you do this to yourself," I mumbled. He only chuckled nervously.

"You really are just one big probably, huh?" Sasuke asked, smirking. I repressed the urge to hiss at him. Hell yeah I was still mad at him! The jerk has still been ignoring me!

Naruto really did growl as he pulled away from said jerk. I released the loud ninja, hoping that he really would tackle Sasuke. "SASUKE…!" he made a strangling motion with his hands. The boy just walked off, paying no heed to Naruto. "_Oi_…! Don't turn your back on me!"

"Yeah! You can't just walk off when you feel like it!" I agreed.

"Watch me," Sasuke called over his shoulder as he continued to walk away.

"I guess we're not making much progress with the teamwork thing, huh?" Kakashi sighed heavily.

"That's right…! Our teamwork is all messed up and it's your fault, Sasuke!" Naruto shouted at the Uchiha's retreating back. "You think you're better than everyone else?!"

"Not everyone… just you," Sasuke replied. "Face it. I'm better and stronger than you are." He suddenly stopped moving. "It's a fact… unless you have what it takes to prove me wrong."

My lips twitched. His eyes weren't focused only on Naruto. _"That lil…!" _I thought, baring my teeth. We seemed to stay in our positions for a few minutes until Kakashi spoke that is.

"Alright, guys… I think that's enough for today," he said. "I'm going to file the report on our missions."

"Whatever… I'm leaving," Sasuke announced.

I watched him go. It really felt as if my entire face was twitching. This was going to drive me insane! "Wait a minute, Sasuke!" I ran after him. He didn't stop. "I said wait, damn you!" This time he halted, allowing me to reach him. He turned his head sideways. I took this as his way of telling me I could talk. Conceited lil… "Why are you doing this?" I asked.

"Doing what?" he asked as if he didn't know.

"You _know_ what! Ever since we've returned from that mission with Zabuza, you've been a complete asshole! Even more than normal…!" I told him. He scowled, but I didn't care at the moment. "Whatever it is that I did, tell me and I'll fix it! I thought—I thought we were more than teammates when we were on that mission. I thought we were actually friends!" I bowed my head. I truly did think of this boy as my friend. My eyes moved back up to see Sasuke staring at me in surprise. "Please correct me if I'm wrong, so I can stop feeling so abandoned and angry and—and hurt!"

"… Mayu…" Sasuke spoke after a few moments of silence. He was the only one who knew my real name. Actually, he was only one to figure out that I wasn't Haruno Sakura, but still… We confided in each other. He told me things that not a lot of people know about… Well, a lot fans, like myself, know all about Naruto and everyone on the show, but that doesn't count! "You… really are PMSing, aren't you?" I growled at him. "But I understand how you're feeling now." He turned his back to me again. "… I'm sorry, okay? And we are friends." He walked off after saying, in his view, probably the most embarrassing thing ever.

"Wow…" I muttered, turning. "Really wasn't expecting an apology, but I guess it's all good now." I felt like smiling, so I did. I even hummed a little. It wasn't everyday that someone like Sasuke apologized like that. I have truly accomplished great things since I woke up in this body!

"Ne, Sakura-chan… What are you doing?"

It was at that moment that I realized that I was laughing like a fanatic. I abruptly stopped my sinister laughter and zoned in on the surrounding area. Three little kids had joined Naruto in looking at me like I was crazy. I recognized these three as Konohamaru, Moegi, and Udon. Some people believe that he is Hayate's son just because the kid always has a snotty nose. I don't believe it for a second. My vision focused on Naruto again; I saw that he was blushing.

Raising my eyebrow and frowning, I ask why he was turning red. Konohamaru suggested that I was his girlfriend. I scoffed as I rolled my eyes. I may be a Naruto fan, but actually dating the blond? No way in _any _world! I'll leave that up to the Hyuga Princess. Speaking of which… "No, kid, someone already likes Naruto in that way. I couldn't steal him away from her. That'd be wrong," I told him and Naruto. "Besides, he's not my type." Ha! I don't even have a type. For I am only twelve years of age! FEAR MY CHILDISH ANTICS!

"Yeah, yeah! You told me this before! But you never told me who!" Naruto seemed to bounce with excitement.

"I didn't tell _you_…" I muttered, narrowing my eyes. Naruto flinched.

"Uh… What I meant was…" he trailed. I nearly rolled my eyes. "Well, anyway, it's probably some weird, creepy girl that realizes that Sasuke would never look at her so she chooses me instead. Probably not important in the least. I'll take my chances with Sakura-chan."

"YOU DUMBASS…!" I shouted. I couldn't stop myself from punching the crap out of him. He, seriously, flew back and hit the fence. Oops… "She is not weird or creepy! She's cute, adorable, strong and loving! You ungrateful brat…!"

"BOSS…!" the three kids cried in unison. Konohamaru turned to me as the other two rushed over to the, most likely, bleeding shinobi. "You're a witch!" he shouted. "And you're ugly, too!" Normally, I would take his insult to heart, but seeing as how this isn't my face… I walked off, completely disregarding Konohamaru's insults. "You're not human either! You—you annoying cocoon!"

I froze in mid walk. He must've heard it from Sasuke or Naruto once. I felt my eyebrow twitched. Naruto didn't even know why Sasuke called me that and yet he still says it! I slowly turned around. Naruto had gotten up; he looked scared, and so did the others. I must've looked pretty darn scary at that moment. "What did you just call me?" I asked in a very calm voice. It took everything inside to keep my anger in check. I really, really, really don't like it when someone calls me that.

"I said… th-that you're… You're an annoying cocoon!" Konohamaru made the mistake of repeating what he'd said. It was quiet for a few moments as we continued to stare at each other. That's when I ran after them. The four shot off like a couple of bats out of hell! But I didn't stop. Konohamaru will learn not to call me that!

Before it could become a full-fledged chase, Konohamaru ran into a dark figure. I slowed my run to a walk. I stood beside Naruto as the person picked up the little tyke by the scarf. Why was the kid wearing a scarf in this weather, I don't know… I also noticed that a girl standing a little ways off behind him. I blinked. _"OH MY GAWD…!"_ I resisted shouting. _"IT'S TEMARI AND KANKURO!" _It took all my willpower not to scream—I mean, squeal at the thought of their younger sibling.

**Inner Mayu: GAARA! I'M FINALLY GONNA SEE GAARA!!**

"Does this hurt, punk?" Kankuro asked.

"Put him down or you'll pay for it later," Temari commented. She didn't really seem to care for Konohamaru.

"Hey, could you put him down?" I asked, walking forward with a smile. "I haven't got to maim him yet."

"_Ah_…! Don't put me down! Don't put me down!" Konohamaru squealed at the sight of me.

"Well, that's not very nice," I said, frowning. "That's very rude of you, kid."

I saw that Kankuro was looking at my forehead protector. Either that or my pink roots… Unfortunately, I couldn't get my hands on anymore black dye, so I have to go around looking like a person from a random anime show.

…

Wait…

"I expect better manners from the grandson of our Hokage," I commented. "But I guess you're still just a gaki." I noticed that the puppet master flinched. Next, he dropped Konohamaru as if his hand had been scalded. At least he knows not to mess with the leader's kin. The small boy scurried back over to Naruto. I stayed where I was. I wasn't afraid of no Kankuro. How could I be? I mean, it's Kankuro for crying out loud!

A hand suddenly grabbed the front of my shirt. He lifted me off the ground! What a jerk…! "And… who might you be?" he asked.

"A Leaf ninja, moron," I told him. I think he glared at me, but I can't be sure because he didn't open his eyes yet. "Didn't the headband clue you in?"

"_Ah_, a wise-guy, _huh_…?" Kankuro smirked.

"I'm not a guy, doofus," I stated.

"Could have fooled me with that flat chest of yours," he was like a gunslinger or something! Dishing his insults out like they were rehearsed, I mean.

"That may be, but at least I have bigger balls than you," I responded with a smirk of my own.

"I don't like you, little girl."

"Don't like you or your make-up either," I commented.

"HEY…! Let Sakura-chan go!" Naruto's voice interrupted before Kankuro could say something else. He turned his attention to Naruto.

"No, I don't think I will," Kankuro replied.

"Frankly, you don't have much of a choice," I remarked, grabbing his wrist with both hands. He looked towards me, but by then I was already swinging my body over his arm. Using the momentum of my landing, I tossed Kankuro over my shoulder. "_SHAZAAM_…!" I yelled, slamming him on the ground.

Naruto seemed shocked by my actions. I guess he didn't realize that I, too, train on my own. No one else knows this, but I sometimes spar with Hinata. Heheheheh… Not even her teammates or sensei knows about it. And we didn't plan on letting anyone know about it. It actually began when I came back from the Land of Waves. Sasuke was being a douche at the time, so I couldn't annoy him. Instead, I looked for an area so I could train myself. Lucky me, I found Hinata along the way.

Anyway, Kankuro looked up at me in shock. Why was everyone surprised? He didn't even know the uselessness that is pre-time skip Sakura. I heard that Sakura got stronger after the time skip, but I'll see if that's true when I see it, but for now—wait, where was I going with this? Oh, the point was that Kankuro didn't know about it!

Before he could move, I slammed by foot against his stomach. He didn't look like he liked that at all. I moved my foot up to his throat. His free hand grasped my ankle; I still had his arm in a twisted position, after all. "You know, dude, it's not a good idea to attack your allies," I told him. "That could cause a war. No one but a snake bastard wants _that_!"

"T-Temari, sister…!" Kankuro breathed out.

I took a sideward glance at the sand kunoichi. She only shook her head. "Oh no, Kankuro, I told you to stop, but you kept doing it," Temari replied. "I'm not apart of this. You brought this on yourself. Not my fault you underestimated a kunoichi."

"Where do you get off hurting little kids, anyway?" I asked, looking down at Kankuro. "That's so lame and stupid. I would hate to be related to someone as pathetic as you." Maybe I should stop while I'm ahead. Kankuro looks pissed off at me. "Gomennasai… This is only self-defense." I released him and stood back.

Instead of being grateful for letting him go, he looked like he was about to blow! He stood glaring at me, but this glare was nothing. It pales in comparison to the real stoic characters of this show. "You little twerp…!" Kankuro shouted.

"Sakura-chan…!" Naruto exclaimed just as the puppet master threw a punch. No one has ever punched me before, not really… Perhaps it's good if I get hit…

The hit that I was waiting for never came. I opened by eyes hesitantly to see that Kankuro was looking over me. He was always holding his wrist as if it pained him. I turned. _"Oh, Sasuke's here,"_ I thought. But that time, I actually wanted to get hit! He was tossing a small rock up and down.

"You're a little too far away from home to be starting fights," Sasuke said.

He didn't seem interested in the fact that I was glaring at him. Maybe I should ask Hinata to punch me in the face next time I see her. It would take some talking, but I'm sure she would do that for me. "Oh great, another wimp to tick me off," Kankuro muttered.

"Another wimp, you say?" Sasuke smirked. Did he just crush that rock in his hand?

"_Nah, it was probably just a dirt clot."_

"That's not what you were saying while you were under her foot. What was it…? Oh, it was 'T-Temari, sister…!' What a loser," Sasuke continued, oblivious to my thoughts. If he did hear that, I guaranteed that he wouldn't be complimenting me. I guess that was a compliment… "I despise losers like you. Get lost." Moegi squealed.

"Sugoi…!" Udon looked pretty amazed as well. Konohamaru sounded disappointed as he asked Naruto why he was cool like Sasuke.

"Hey, punk, get down here," Kankuro demanded. "You're the kinda pesky snot I hate the most. All talk and no action."

My attention was focused on the puppet master again. He began taking off that thing that was on his back. I think that's one of his puppets. "Nani…?!" Temari spoke up. Her voice sounded incredulous. "You're going to use the Crow for this?!"

"_Ah…! The Crow,"_ I thought, turning my eyes back to Kankuro.

"Kankuro…" a new voice spoke. It was deep and kinda gruff-like. "Knock it off." My eyes expanded. Could this be…? I turned around sharply and looked towards the tree. Sure enough, there he was. The red-headed, sand-using ninja was standing, upside down in the tree, right beside Sasuke, whom was looking quite shocked at the moment. "You're an embarrassment to our village."

"H-Hey, Gaara…" Kankuro sounded scared. And he should be! I wouldn't want to be an embarrassment to an entire village either. "Listen, Gaara… these guys, they started it." I blinked. And I thought I was immature…

"Shut up," Gaara replied, not caring for his excuse. "I'll kill you."

"I-I-I was at fault… Gomen… Go-Gomennasai…" Kankuro continued.

Gaara turned his head. "Excuse them, you guys," he said. I resisted the urge to sigh in a dream like fashion. Gaara was soooooooo cute!

"Kawaii…!" I muttered. Sasuke stood as Gaara disappeared, and then reappeared on the ground beside his siblings. He stared at me, causing me to smile.

**Inner Mayu: Kyaa…! Gaara is so awesome!**

The adorable red-head turned to his siblings. "Let's go," he told them. "We didn't come here to fool around.

"I know…" Kankuro replied, still a bit shaken. I bet he almost pissed his pants. The three began to walk off.

"Matte…!" I called out. Luckily, they stopped. I grinned when Temari answered. "I already know you guys are from Suna and that you're here for the chuunin exams," I began. Sasuke landed on the ground next to me. Oh, right… I guess I should ask for their names and not their autographs… Luckily, Sasuke unintentionally reminded me before it came out of my mouth. "… _Ano_…"

"What is your name?" Sasuke asked.

Temari stopped and turned around. There was a blush on her face. "Y-You mean me?" she asked, shyly.

"No, I meant the one with the gourd on his back," Sasuke corrected. I noticed that Temari's smile had turned into a frown. I rolled my eyes. He was such a jerk.

"Don't be rude, Sasuke. Of course we want to know _all_ of their names!" I said.

"My name is Temari," the sandy blond kunoichi answered.

"Kankuro."

"And you…?" Sasuke asked.

"Gaara of the Desert," my adorable little Panda-chan answered, turning to face us. "I am also interested in you. What's your name?"

"My name-" I pushed Sasuke out of Gaara's line of vision and stood in his place. I clasped my hands together as I stared at the red-head; I'm sure that my eyes were now pink hearts.

"My name's Ma—_ah_, I mean… Haruno Sakura!" I told him. "But you can call me Mayu-chan if you want!" He nodded his head. That meant that I was acknowledged! AWESOME!

"Mayu…!" Sasuke hissed at me.

"Gomen," I muttered, falling back. Sasuke coughed, and then turned his attention to Gaara.

"Uchiha Sasuke is my name," he said.

The two stared at each other. They didn't seem to care about the gentle breeze that suddenly came. "Hey! Hey! Don't you want to know my name?!" Naruto exclaimed, breaking the mood.

"I couldn't care less," Gaara responded. That probably flattened Naruto's ego considerably. The three sand ninja turned their backs, and then jumped away.

I turned to Sasuke. He had a smirk on his face as if he just escaped the claws of a hungry cat. "Looks like we have some competition finally," he said. His dark eyes turned to me.

"Looks like…" I muttered.

"Hey! Hey! Hey! What's the chuunin exam, Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked.

"It's exactly what it sounds like," I replied. "It's basically a test to see if a ninja is ready to advance on to the next level, a chuunin. As a chuunin, a ninja will receive better missions than D-rank."

"Nani…?!" Judging from his voice, I could tell that this was first he'd heard of the chuunin exams. "I definitely want to take it!" I narrowed my eyes as I watched Naruto dance around and fantasize about becoming Hokage.

"Sasuke…"

"What is it?"

"It's going to be hard…" I looked at him. "I want us to train together."

"Together, just the two of us?" Sasuke gave me a skeptic look. "I don't have time to go on dates."

I could feel my eye twitch. "Like I'd want to date _you_…! And anyway, you still have to kiss Ino-chan for that bet you lost! I ain't forgot!" I stated. Sasuke grumbled something. "And I meant the three of us. All of us, training together."

"That would only waste my time and hold me back," Sasuke said. "… and I'm not kissing Ino." I rolled my eyes.

"We'll talk about this later," I stated. "I have to go now." I jumped away with a smirk on my face.

Did Sasuke really think he had a choice?

* * *

The next morning, Kakashi asked to meet with us. Of course, he was late again, but he made up for that by telling us that he recommended all of for the chuunin selection exam. Naruto practically glomped him after explaining some things to us. Anyway, he told us that in five days, we should head back to the Academy to register, I think. In those five days, random ninja number two came after me. I know that it was Iruka in disguise, so I almost kicked him. Too bad he wasn't even real, which sucked! I wanted to fight someone like Sasuke did!

Speaking of that Uchiha, he finally came out and told me why he's been acting so moody. He said it was because I reversed Haku's technique and saved him. Just because I saved him, he feels that he owes me. I remembered rolling my eyes when he told me and thinking to myself: _Boys and their egos_… I told him that I didn't even realize what happened and how I did it.

Sasuke said that he'd copied the hand signs that I did and showed me. And then he had the gull to order me to master whatever jutsu that I had done. And he wondered why I looked at him like he was crazy. But since then, I have been practicing. Too bad I didn't have it down yet.

… _Uh_… Anyway, it's been five days, so that's why I'm currently walking towards the Academy. "Sakura-chan…! You're late!" Naruto almost pouted.

"You try making two colors in your hair look okay, and then say that!" I groaned, frowning. "At least I'm here, right?" I fiddled with my headband as my two teammates stared at me. "Nani…?"

"Nothing," Sasuke was the one who answered, and then he looked away from me.

"Hm, sure… Well, let's get this show on the road!"

Pretty soon, the three of us were with some other genin. It seemed that they were all trying to get into a room. We pushed ourselves through the crowd. I quickly realized that this was some type of genjutsu. Maybe it was because I'm a genius or maybe it has something to do with the fact that I am… knowledgeable about this episode. Hadn't really decided yet.

I saw Lee getting thrown back by another ninja. I smiled. Lee and all his glory. No, he wasn't as good as Gaara, but pretty darn good in his own right. "You're trying to take the chuunin exam with that level?" one of the ninja asked with a smug voice. His nose and hair were… memorable to say the least.

"Maybe you should quit, kids," the one with headband covering his head suggested.

"You're still just kids, after all," the spiky-haired one stated. Tenten stood up. She was the one who had comforted Lee when he was pushed.

"Please let us through," she pleaded, only to get punched in the face. Seeing a girl get punched in the face was not cool, kunoichi or not. Speaking of which, I never convinced Hinata to hit me in the face. No matter how many times I asked her, she only said no. She had _no_ problem using the Byakugan on my body!

Someone in the crowd stated that what the ninja did was cruel. "What did you say?" red nose asked. "We're only doing you guys a favor. The exam is extremely difficult."

"We have seen those who quit being a ninja or got injured severely thanks to this exam," masked chin continued; he was grinning.

"Sasuke…! That's not even the right door! Why are _we_ still here?!" I whispered, _loudly_ to my teammate. Everyone in the hall turned their eyes to me. "_Oops_…"

"So one of you noticed, eh?" masked chin asked.

Sasuke stepped forward, causing Naruto and I to do the same. "Of course we noticed," he said. "Sakura's eyes for seeing through illusions are the best on our squad." I blinked at his bluff.

"… Right," I agreed. "This is only the second floor, after all."

"Yes…!" Naruto also noticed.

The room number suddenly changed into 201. There were gasps all throughout the hallway. "You're pretty good. But being able to detect it isn't enough," red nose finally opened one of his eyes. He suddenly attacked! Sasuke, being who he is, tried to kick him back. Before the two could collide, however, Lee stopped them my holding their legs and standing in between them.

I grinned because of all the surprised looks. _"That's Lee, for you!"_ I thought. Rock Lee is super fast even with his weights on! Maybe I should try weight training like he does? I'll definitely consider it!

Red nose jumped a few inches away, while Sasuke stared at Lee's hand. So he still thinks he's better than everyone, _huh_? The rest of Lee's team stepped forward. "You broke the promise," Neji stated. I recognized those eyes anywhere. He's Hinata's cousin, though she doesn't like talking about him. "You're the one who didn't want to attract attention by doing something that stands out."

"Demo…" Lee mumbled. He turned his attention to me. I noticed that Tenten was shaking her head. Eh…? Don't tell me this is when he…? Lee walked towards me and I had to stop the nervous chuckle that threatened to come out of my mouth. "My name is Rock Lee," he told me. As if I didn't already know the name of the person I admire! "You're Sakura-san, right?"

"Sure…" I replied. Lee blushed. I really had to force myself not to glomp my idol right then and there. Lee held a thumb up.

"Let's go out together!" he proclaimed. "I'll protect you until the day I die!" He was winking at me, and then his teeth shined.

I couldn't take it anymore! I glomped him. Yeah, everyone's probably looking at me weird, but I don't care. I think Lee was also surprised because he stumbled a bit. I finally pulled away, hearing a: "Sakura-chan…!" from Naruto. My arms were still around the stunned-looking taijutsu user.

"I would love to go out with you…!" I declared loudly. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that Sasuke had this 'WTF' expression on his face. "But I… can't…" I continued, letting my arms fall. "I'm too young. Besides, I want to focus on getting stronger. Maybe next year, Lee-kun!" I stood on my tip toes and leaned forward. Sakura's lips made contact with Lee's cheek. "Kissu…!"

I laughed mentally as I walked away. Sakura would probably freak out if she ever found out about that. Once I stopped laughing on the inside, I realized that both my teammates were glaring at me. "Nani…?" I asked confused. Sasuke grumbled something under his breath, and then turned away. Naruto about did the same. I only shrugged at their actions.

"Hey, you there," I heard Neji speak. He was walking towards our group. Sasuke turned to face him. "Identify yourself."

"You're supposed to identify yourself before asking that information," Sasuke replied, shoving his hands into his pockets. He really liked to do that, didn't he? Come to think of it, Neji was doing the same thing… They are complete weirdoes…

"You're a rookie, aren't you?" Neji asked. He probably already knew that. This is why I think that he secretly likes Sasuke. On T.V., every time they see it each other, they greet each other in this weird way. "How old are you?" And now he's even asking for his age!? Neji's just digging himself deeper, isn't he?

"I'm not obligated to get out that information," Sasuke answered.

Neji didn't like his answer, and to show that, he glared. "Nani?!" Neji sounded as if he was insulted. How could someone get offended by that when you're doing the same thing? Boys confuse me to no end. I shook my head as they continued to stare at each other. Sasuke finally walked away and headed towards Naruto and me.

"Let's go," he said, sounding neutral.

The three of us walked pass Neji's team, passing the still love-stricken Lee on the way. I giggled lightly at his expression. Sakura's going to have her hands full when she gets back.

* * *

I wrote this in one day (with help, of course), so forgive me if there are any errors! I think I got Mayu-chan's character down; at least that's what TFK-fan118 says… Also, the first few chapters will be in Mayu-chan's point of view, and then it will branch off into third person. Please review.


	2. Get This Party Started

It wasn't long before we made it the next floor. After a troubling defeat handed to Naruto and Sasuke by Lee, they were not happy at the moment. Right now, both of them are glaring at Kakashi as if it was his fault that they got their asses handed to them. I know I shouldn't have done it, but I laughed. The glares I got from them were insane! I mean, it felt like they really wanted to destroy my very soul! I mentally shrugged as I thought about it. _"No pain, no gain,"_ I mused.

Though I should be listening to Kakashi right now, shouln't I? I really should be paying attention to what he says. It could be important. "Sakura, Naruto, and Sasuke... I am proud of you," he said. Okay, so it was kinda important. I'll make a note to listen to him in the future. "I couldn't ask for a better team."

"_Aww_, sensei...!" I felt myself getting misty-eyed at his words.

"Good luck, you three," Kakashi continued, stepping aside.

"We won't let you down, sensei!" Naruto exclaimed as the three of us walked towards the doors. It was Sasuke and I that pushed the doors open. The three of us walked in only to be greeted by a whole bunch of ninja. They were all glaring like we took the last meat bun, or something! "Oh, man, who knew that there would be so many?"

"Sasuke-kun...! Where have you been!" a familiar voice snapped my attention away from the mean-looking genin in the room. I saw that Ino had glomped Sasuke. I grinned at the scene. "You have no idea how much I was hoping that you'd show up here." Ino had a sweet smile on her face. She was on his back, hugging him from behind.

"Ino-chan...!" I exclaimed, making my way over to the two. Ino looked up at me, and then hopped off of her precious Sasuke-kun.

"Sakura-chan!" she said. "Didn't expect to see you here."

"Ha-ha," I faked a laugh. I grinned evilly. I saw Sasuke flinch so I know he saw it. "Sasuke..." I nearly purred.

"Hell no!" he responded. "No way in hell!"

"You promised!"

"I did not!"

"Yes you did! We had a bet and you lost that bet, so do it!" I exclaimed, pointing a finger. The others looked back and forth between me and Sasuke; they were confused. "Are you a man, or aren't you? Where's you sense of honor?!"

_Oooh…_ That was definitely a gut punch. Sasuke made a face as if he had smelled something nasty. He grumbled a few curse words, and then grabbed Ino's arm. "S-Sasuke-kun...! Wh-What are you doing?" Ino stammered out. Sasuke, quite rudely, forced Ino's face closer to his.

_"He's really going to kiss her!"_ I thought, smiling widely.

Now instead of going for the lips, Sasuke took the cowards way out and kissed her forehead. I shrugged. It still got the job done, right? Ino swooned and fell. She would have fallen to the ground had it not been for Shikamaru catching her. Chouji was beside the real genius of the Rookie Nine. "I knew that this was going to be troublesome, but I didn't know it was going to be this lame," the lazy ninja sighed, looking down at his swirly-eyed teammate.

"Hn..." Sasuke grunted.

"So all three stooges are here?" Naruto muttered.

"Hey, you know what idiot... _Ah_, whatever...! You're just another troublesome person," Shikamaru waved off Naruto's insult. As expected from Nara Shikamaru. I secretly think he's a pimp. My eyes moved over to the bigger friend.

Akimichi Chouji was eating a bag of chips at this very moment. He, Shikamaru, and Ino were all apart of Asuma's team. He's the jounin who smokes. "Well, well, what do ya know?" another voice spoke up. I looked over to see Kiba, Akamaru, Hinata, and Shino walking towards us. "It looks like the whole gang is back together again."

"_Ah_... Hello, Naruto-kun," Hinata greeted softly. Her lavender-colored eyes shifted over to me. "And Sakura-chan."

"Hey, Hinata-chan...!" I greeted back with a nod. She suddenly blushed and looked away. That must mean that Naruto staring at her.

**Inner Mayu: All my otaku dreams would come true if **_they_** kissed!**

"You guys, too, huh?" Shikamaru asked. He finally dropped Ino to the ground, causing her to wake up.

"HEY!" she shouted, glaring at the offender. Shikamaru only shrugged and pushed his hands in his pockets. His attention turned back to Kiba. "Man, everyone's here for this... troublesome thing." And then Kiba starts talking about how the nine of us were together again.

I sighed lightly. Can't we just get own with it? People talk way too much in this series. It gets annoying after a while. "Hey, you guys," an unfamiliar voice entered my ears. Who do I see walking towards us? I seriously wanted to snarl at that moment. Who else could make me react this way besides the snake bastard himself? The one and only right hand man, Kabuto. "You might want to try keeping it down." He stopped walking when he reached us with his hands on his hips, I might add. "I mean, no offense, but you're the nine rookies, right?"

"Oh, and what's it to ya?" I asked, stepping forward. He looked surprised that I was glaring at him.

"I just wouldn't go making a scene if I were you," Kabuto said.

"And who the hell asked you?" I took another step towards him.

"Sakura, what are you doing?" I heard Sasuke call out to me.

"My name is Yakushi Kabuto," the purple-clad ninja stated.

"Funny, I don't remember asking for it!"

"Sakura-chan, what's the matter?" Naruto appeared by my side. I only took another step towards Kabuto. Even though I was shorter than him, I really hoped I looked menacing. Well, he was practically gaping at me, so maybe I did.

"You may have everyone else fooled by you little… 'I'm only warning you' attitude, but you and I both know you have a secret motive behind it," I stated, glaring. Kabuto moved back, but I only followed him. "So let me tell you something right now. Stay the hell away from my team. Or you won't have to worry about not being a chuunin or anything else because I will make sure you life as a shinobi ends... _permanently_!"

I glared for a few seconds, and then turned my back to him. "Sakura-chan, what's-" I interrupted him by grabbing his wrist; I also grabbed Sasuke. I pulled them both away from Kabuto. "H-Hey, not so rough, Sakura-chan...!"

"Pipe down and move your ass," I retorted, pulling them forward. They stumbled in front of me. "Listen, you two... You can't trust everyone. That guy was giving me a real bad feeling just now."

"Huh...? I didn't feel nothing!" Naruto complained, locking his hands behind his head. I sighed heavily, wondering how dense a person could be.

"Just listen to me, okay?" I requested. "There are people in this world that deceive people just for the hell of it. This is a chuunin exam. And that means we can only trust each other. For right now, we can't even trust the other rookie nine. Got it?" The two were silent for a moment.

"Got it," Sasuke was the first one to speak.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Naruto agreed, nodding.

"Good, now-"

A small poof sound stopped me from speaking. I looked towards the head of the class to see a lot of older men and woman standing there. The one in front, wearing black and sporting two scars on his face spoke. "It's time to begin. I am your proctor, Morino Ibiki," he said. I felt my eyebrows knit together. Isn't he that torture guy? "First, you candidates from the Sound village," Ibiki pointed a finger towards the back, causing everyone to turn because we're all just nosy people. "Knock it off! Who told you that you're allowed to fight? You wanna fail before we've even started?!"

I really didn't pay attention to the response. I already know what happened. I'll tell my confused teammates about it later. My focus, right now, was on Ibiki. _"I never realized… how scary-looking he could be,"_ I thought. _"I wonder if he's married…"_ And then I started to wonder who would marry him. Anko, perhaps? I am so glad I started paying attention again before I threw up.

"Now, if we're ready, we'll proceed with the first part of the chuunin exam," Ibiki continued. "Hand over your paperwork. In return, each of you will be given a number. This number will determine where you will sit. We'll start by taking a written test once all of you are seated."

"Th-The what?" Naruto sounded slightly afraid as he continued look towards the front. "Did he say… _written_?" One of the ninja held up a big ass stack of papers. Those probably were the tests. "Noooooooooo! Not a written test! NO WAY!"

I heard Sasuke chuckle at the agonizing protest. "That's right… You were always bad at written tests, weren't you?" I asked, and then sighed.

"What a dobe."

"Shut up, Sasuke-teme!"

"Let's just turn in our paperwork," I rumbled my temples wearily.

* * *

Here I am, sitting away from both Naruto and Sasuke. From my vantage point, I could see the blond ninja. As for Sasuke, I don't know where he was placed. I sighed heavily as I twirled a pencil between my fingers. Lucky Hinata, she got to sit by her crush. Little ol' me had to sit far away from Gaara and Lee. Not that they were my crushes. I don't have crushes. Well, there was that one American singer. Now he was hot! What was his name again…? Chris Brown?

"Like I said before, they will be no questions! So if any of you didn't hear what I just said, then tough shit!" Ibiki's voice boomed. I literally went pale when I heard that. I really hope it wasn't something important. "And with that being said… BEGIN!" I breathed heavily before flipping over my paper. When I watched this episode, the characters were all complaining how hard it was, so it was probably going to be super hard for me. I wrote Sakura's name down, and then looked at the first question.

First question was a something like a puzzle. _"Oh, I guess I have to crack the code,"_ I thought. Smiling, I began to write. _"Luckily, I watched Case Closed a lot! Thank you Conan Edogawa! One truth really does prevail!"_ I scanned over the second question as I finished up the first. My eyes widen. _"But this is math. They teach this stuff back in school. I'll just substitute the shuriken for a more practical object." _Doing that, I read over the question again. _"I knew it! This is based on math! No wonder Naruto and even Sasuke thought this was hard. In this world, people aren't taught about things like science and math. Well, at least they never showed it being taught on this series." _

I kept my head tilted down, but my eyes were on Naruto's back. _"This stuff is only semi-hard for someone who actually had to learn about it, but for Naruto and the others… they're SOL, aren't they?" _I thought, looking down at my paper again. It really doesn't matter, anyway. As long as the last question is answered right, we'll still move on. And that means I don't have to finish this! _"But what should I do for an hour?"_ A smile spread across my face.

Everybody was kung-fu fighting!

Those cats were fast as lightning…

"Alright, listen up…!" a voice boomed. I slowly opened my eyes. My eyesight was a bit blurry. "That includes you, pinkie!" I sat up to see everyone staring at me. Was I asleep? I wonder when that happened. I covered a yawn with my left hand, and then rubbed the crap from my eyes. I really hope I don't dream about ninja prancing around in tutus again. That was just plain weird. "Here's the tenth and finally question!" Every head turned back to Ibiki.

_"Oh, the tenth question,"_ I forced my eyes to stay open.

"Before I give you the tenth question, there are some rules…" Ibiki stated. When will this end?! "These rules correspond with question ten, so please try not to get scared."

"Or sleepy," I muttered.

"Who said that?! WHO THE FUCK SAID THAT?!"

I sank lower in my seat, just hoping and praying that I would turn invisible. The ones around me looked equally scared. Perhaps if I put on an ignorant face, he won't even look at me.

He looked right at me.

"_Oh crap…"_ I thought.

Something suddenly landed on my desk. It was small and white. _"It's a tiny piece of paper rolled up so it's even tinier." _I looked up at Ibiki. His eyes were on someone else, thank Kami-sama. I hesitantly fiddled with the paper with my pencil. It looked as if it were a message. Because the writing was so tiny, I had to strain my eyes to read it. 'Mayu, you idiot.' That's what it said. "Stupid bird brain…!" I grumbled.

"Very well then… I'll find out later," Ibiki continued pacing the front of the room. That sounded like a threat. Oh, man! Way to go, Mayu, piss off the torture specialist! "Rule number one, each of you can choose whether or not to be given the final question. This question is so harsh that it will test you very soul! If you get it right, you automatically pass the test. If you get it wrong, not only do you fail, but you can never take the chuunin exam again!"

Great, here comes the complaining. I think Kiba was the loudest of all. I'm surprised Naruto didn't get up and start shouting at Ibiki for denying him the chance of becoming Hokage. _"Can I go back to sleep now?"_ I thought, staring lazily at our proctor. He was laughing like an evil scientist at the moment. I'll zone in on him once he announces the final question, not that I need to. He should be happy to get my attention for that, right?

Several people suddenly just up and left. What a bunch of cowards. Naruto raised his hand. I blanched. _"You've got to be kidding me!"_ I thought. _"After I just called the other ones cowards, he goes and raises his hand!"_

"DON'T UNDERESTIMATE ME!" Naruto shouted, slamming his hand on the desk.

I could seriously feel the sweat drop running down my head.

Why does he have to be so dramatic about it? _"And he's still declaring things,"_ I thought, almost rolling my eyes. _"Was that the word 'Hokage' I just heard come from his mouth? How surprising..."_ Yeah, I was sarcastic even in my mind. I took a glance around the room. Everywhere I turned, there were smiles on every face. _"Looks like he inspired everyone. Thanks a lot, Naruto."_ I smiled at his back. _"Baka."_

Ibiki took a step forward. "I admire your determination," he said. "For those of you remaining, there's only one thing left to do… and that's for me to tell you… that you've all passed the first part of the chuunin exam!"

-pregnant pause-

I don't think Ibiki could have dodged all those erasers and pencils if he tried.

After everyone calmed down, he began telling us why he did was he did. He told us why the others failed and why it was important to gather information. And then he showed us his scarred head. Really could have just described his injuries instead of showing it! A little decency goes a long way, my friend! Okay, now he's telling us the importance of the tenth question. To further explain the importance, he even gave us a hypothetical mission. Oh, the joys of learning!

"ALRIGHT…! We did it!" Naruto exclaimed, jumping from his seat. The blond shinobi was so happy that he hugged Hinata. She promptly fainted in his arms. Naruto didn't seem to notice at all.

"_Hinata-chan's so adorable,"_ I thought, smiling.

I turned around in my seat, so I could search for Sasuke. My eyes locked onto him; he was smirking as if he knew all along that we would pass. He caught me looking at him. If possible, I think his ego grew about an inch. Before I could call out to him, I heard a sound. It sounded as if something crashed into glass. I whirled around to see a dark banner and a lady, who seemed to love fishnets, at the head of the class. Ibiki seemed to have disappeared.

_"Anko… of course,"_ I grinned at her flashy entrance. I rested my head in the palms of my hands, ready to listen to the dango-loving kunoichi.

"I'll be your next proctor, Mitarashi Anko!" she exclaimed. "Ready for your next test!" Before anyone could answer, she struck the air with her fist. "GOOD! Follow me…!" It was quiet for a few seconds.

Someone coughed.

Ibiki stepped out from behind the banner and told her she was early. Anko looked mildly embarrassed because of this. Naruto's name flashed several times in my head. I guess she and Naruto are alike. Anko turned her attention to us. "_Hm_… It could be, but they sure don't look it. Trust me, before I'm done with 'em, more than half of 'em will be gone," she commented, hands on her hips. "This is gonna be fun," Anko continued, smirking. "You may have had it easy so far, but things are gonna be different starting first thing tomorrow morning! I'll let your squad leaders know where you're to meet me. Dismissed."

* * *

Ibiki walked down the rows collecting the written tests. Outside, the sun was setting. The torture specialist stopped for a moment to gaze at its beauty. Back to picking up papers, Ibiki noticed something off with one of the papers. He read it out loud in confusion. It wasn't every day that you see something like this, after all.

"Stupid… cocoon girl?"

* * *

"This is the second location for the next stage in the exam," Anko stated. Her piercing gaze struck mild fear in the hearts of the genin. But it was the restricted area behind her that caused the rookies to shiver. Behind the gates was a forest of some kind; it had a sense of foreboding to it. "It's a battle training zone… But we call it the Forest of Death." Her malevolent smile did not quell the quick beating of their hearts.

Green eyes gaped at the giant tree. Slightly afraid, Mayu swallowed hard. She knew the most terrifying creatures lay dormant in this zone. The wind picked up, causing her legs to involuntarily wobble. _"I hate snakes!" _She hugged herself. _"Oro-teme, too…! But I have to go through with this, or Sasuke…" _Her thoughts trailed off as she took a glance at her oblivious teammate.

Uchiha Sasuke was staring into the forest as if he were fascinated by the very aura it gave off. Mayu turned her gaze to the ground. She didn't want him or Naruto to get hurt. Before, it was just a show. The characters got hurt before, but it didn't matter, they weren't real. Now, everything was real, too real. Even her growing feelings for her teammates were real.

Mayu's eyes shifted over to Naruto's back, only to see that he was getting chased back and forth by… a rock, a moving rectangular prism, but a rock nonetheless. A pink eyebrow twitched. Mayu already knew who had on that terrible disguise. It was Konohamaru and his friends. Seconds later, the rock exploded, leaving behind pink, blue, and yellow smoke. Also, there were three younger kids.

The two boys and girl were on there hands and knees coughing because of the smoke. Mayu shook her head, sighing. _"The calm before the storm, I suppose."_ She watched her teammate converse with the little ones. Pretty soon, Anko came over to them. The brown-eyed jounin then remembered that the kids were supposed to do an interview for the Academy. She announced a ten minute break.

"Sweet…! That means I can rest before I take it!" Mayu almost jumped up in excitement. She wandered away from the restricted area, hoping to find a shaded tree she could lay under. Not a moment after she spotted a good place, she paused her walk and turned around. "Is there a reason you're following me?"

"Hn."

Mayu blinked.

"Is that supposed to be an answer?" She frowned. Sasuke made another sound, and then turned his head away. Mayu stared at her teammate with a flat look. _"What the hell is with him?"_ She mentally shrugged, and then began walking towards the tree that she had picked out earlier. _"He's such a weirdo,"_ she thought, sitting down and pressing her back to the tree. Mayu sighed in content, closing her eyes.

"Now _who's_ ignoring who?" Mayu cracked an eye open to see Sasuke standing over her; his hands were, again, shoved in his pockets. He didn't seem to care that Mayu was trying to doze off. Nor did he seem to care about the lazy glare that he was receiving at the moment. Mayu gave up glaring with a sigh. She seemed to be doing that a lot lately.

"What do you want?" She closed her eyes again. Sasuke didn't respond for a moment, causing Mayu to look up at him. "What is it?"

"It's nothing, really," he began. He sat down, Indian style. "I just wanted to ask you if you've been practicing what I showed you."

Mayu blinked.

Sasuke blinked.

Mayu gave a nervous chuckle.

Sasuke gave a heated glare.

"_You're_ the one who begged for me to show you that jutsu and yet you're not even practicing?!" It's no wonder the Uchiha felt insulted. He folded his arms. Mayu had come to him, _in the middle of the night_, and demanded that he show her the hand signs. Maybe he did taunt her before showing her, but still…! It was the middle of the night! Sasuke had thought she was another fan girl for crying out loud. And anyway, she shouldn't have laughed at him for screaming—uh… giving a manly shout of surprise.

Mayu huffed indignantly. Seriously, Sasuke couldn't take a joke, could he? "Relax, dude! I was kidding," she waved off his fierce look as if he were nothing.

"Have you mastered it yet?"

"Seeing as how I don't have anyone to 'master' it on, I don't know."

"What about the other one?"

The green-eyed kunoichi rubbed under her nose. "Actually, that's kinda hard to do," she admitted. "But I guess it's improving." Sasuke exhaled slowly.

"Good. Here, use that jutsu on me right now." He looked at her as if he expected something. Mayu didn't move an inch. "What's wrong? I'm giving you permission."

She only turned her head, closing her eyes as she did. "I don't want to reveal something like that right now." She crossed her arms. "And besides, the other teams are looking at us. I don't know if it's because of you surname or if they're expecting us to kiss or something, but I don't want them knowing." Sasuke make a face at her comment. Mayu glared. "Glad to know I'm so repulsive in your eyes," she muttered, sarcastically.

Sasuke had the nerve to smirk. "Yeah, whatever."

"And _this_ is why I don't like you sometimes."

Before Sasuke could retort, Konohamaru, Udon, and Moegi came towards the two. His dark eyes turned to the younger children. "Hey, Sasuke…!" Udon was to the one who spoke first. "You're the coolest! When I look at you, I see my future self!" Mayu snorted, trying to stifle an obnoxious laugh.

"_I bet Sasuke did have a runny nose when he was younger!"_ she thought, completely ignoring the eye daggers the Uchiha sent at her.

"Do you mind if I get a few things from you from our article?" Udon continued.

"Sure, why not?" He gave in. Mayu smiled, thinking he was a big softy. "Mind as well set the record straight. I'm sure that loser told you many lies." The smile disappeared.

"Shut up, teme!" Naruto walked towards the group. "They came to interview me, not you!"

"They came to interview everyone, dobe. There are other ninja here, you know?" Sasuke grinned, "Dattebayo…" he mocked Naruto, causing the blond shinobi to growl. Sasuke growled right back.

"_I'm never going to get that nap, am I?"_ Mayu sighed wearily.

She, along with Konohamaru's group, watched the two go back and forth, bickering like four-year-olds. Mayu turned towards the three interviewers. "As you can see, Naruto and Sasuke have a bitter rivalry thing going on," she told them. The kids wrote down some things in their handy-dandy notebooks. "Honestly, though, I think they act like brothers. They love each other deep inside."

"What about you, Haruno-san?" Moegi asked. "Do you have a rival?"

"Nope, can't say I do," Mayu answered with a grin. "Though, there are a number of people I want to beat, but they're not my rivals."

"I see."

"Hey, do you have someone you like?" Konohamaru asked. He held his pinky up. "Someone like this?! Is it the boss, or his rival?" Mayu did not notice that the bickering between her teammates had ended.

"Nani…? No way do I like those guys like that!" Mayu giggled at the silly question. "But there is someone who I kinda like."

"What's his name?" Udon asked, and then sniffed.

"Rock Lee, the greatest ninja ever!" If someone were to look closely enough, they would see sparkles in the girl's eyes.

"NANI…?!" Naruto shouted, causing Mayu to snap out of her daydream. The four looked towards the blond ninja in surprise. "What's that loser got that I don't?!"

A pink eyebrow twitched.

"_Ch_… Your taste in guys is just horrible, cocoon girl."

The other eyebrow twitched twice.

Mayu stood up calmly and stood behind her broody teammates. They were none the wiser as they continued to insult. "Why would anyone like a guy with bushy eyebrows like that, anyway?" Naruto ranted. "I mean they're _huge_!"

"But than again, freaks and cocoons belong together."

"Why don't you guys…" Mayu began. Sasuke and Naruto flinched, and then looked up at their female teammate. She had this calm, eerie look on her face. Naruto could have sworn he saw lightning strike behind her. Sasuke could have sworn she was surrounded by flames and she appeared to be bigger, almost giant. The girl moved her hands; they now rested on each boy's opposite ear. "GO TO HELL!" She finished, and then slammed their heads together. Her calm expression had turned into a demonic look as she stomped away, leaving her teammates withering on the ground.

Konohamaru hesitantly poked his boss with a stick. Udon proceeded to do the same with Sasuke. Moegi stared at Mayu's back as she moved further away. "Sugoi…! I wanna be just like her!" she exclaimed. The young kunoichi-in-training clasped her hands together in admiration.

* * *

Squad 7 stared at their proctor expectantly. Actually, Naruto nearly gawked at the forest behind her. His hand was perched over his eyes as if he was attempting to investigate the forest from his vantage point. Sasuke resisted rolling his eyes at the idiotic actions of his fellow teammate. His eyes drifted over to his other teammate. In her green eyes, he saw mild fear. It was strange seeing that certain emotion. Usually, she would make a joke out of dangerous situations. Sasuke moved closer to her.

"Are you okay?" he asked, not taking his eyes off the gates that lead into the forest. Mayu took a quick glance at her companion, and then focused on the tall trees.

"What do you mean?"

"You usually stare into the face of danger and laugh."

"Correction, I stare into the face of danger and crack a very humorous joke."

"Forgive me for getting that wrong." Sasuke almost rolled his eyes again. "Scared…?"

"Definitely."

"As you should be." Anko must have heard their conversation. Her predatory eyes honed in on Sasuke and Mayu. She grinned at them. "It's not called the Forest of Death for nothing. And soon enough, you're going to find out why." Naruto didn't like the way Anko practically insulted his teammate. Sakura was just being honest, after all! To show his disdain, he openly mocked what Anko had said, while doing a little pose of some sorts.

"Do your worst! You're not going to scare me away!" Naruto shouted, once he stopped wiggling around. Both Sasuke and Mayu looked away in embarrassment. "I can handle _anything_!" Anko merely smiled. On the inside, though, she was fuming. How dare that brat try to make a fool of her!

"So…" She continued to smile despite her hidden feelings. "Looks like we've got ourselves a tough guy." A kunai smoothly slipped into her hand from her sleeve. She quickly threw the deadly weapon at Naruto. The kunai glided pass Naruto's face and landed near another ninja. Seconds later, a cut appeared on Naruto's cheek. Blood seeped through the open wound.

_"Now Naruto's pissing off the proctors! I'm just glad it wasn't me this time." _Mayu watched Anko vanish, and then re-emerge behind her teammate. The jounin was whispering something in Naruto's ear. And Sasuke had to wonder why his green-eyed teammate was making faces of revulsion. He shrugged and passed it off as Mayu just being Mayu.

His eyes roamed over to Naruto and Anko. He was surprised to see that another ninja had appeared behind the older kunoichi. Sasuke's eyebrows knitted together as he stared. This… person had a long tongue. And in 'it's' tongue was a kunai. _"What the hell?"_ Dark eyes stayed trained on it (he still hadn't figured out the gender) as it moved back towards its teammates.

Sasuke noticed that it winked at him as it passed by. He grimaced, not liking the shiver that ran up his spine. He also noticed that Mayu was glaring at it. It was the same glare that she gave to that Kabuto person. His gaze lingered on his teammate, briefly wondering what was with her and random people that she didn't even know.

He was snapped out of his thoughts by a random ninja passing him a stack of papers. He scanned over the words. _"A consent form…"_ He took one and passed it to Mayu, who also took one and passed it on. His attention focused on Anko again.

"… First, I'll give you a description of the terrain of the practice field." She held up a scroll with a diagram of the forest. "There are 44 locked entrance gates surrounding this forest. There are rivers inside this battle zone. In the middle of the forest lies a tower. Its ten kilometers from each gate. It's in this confide area that you will undergo the survival test. The test consists of…" Anko put away the scroll and pulled out two more scrolls. "… Anything goes battle to get your hands on these scrolls." She held them up for all to see.

"Both of them?" Sasuke asked. Though, the tone in his voice made it seem like he didn't really care what her answer was.

"Yes," Anko replied. "You'll be fighting to get both a Heaven scroll and an Earth scroll." All of the participates of the exam looked on, waiting for her to continue. "All together, 26 teams will be taking part in this test, so half of those teams will go after an Earth scroll and the other half try to take the Heaven scroll. I'll hand over one type of scroll to each team."

"Right, but how do we pass this test?" Sasuke asked.

"You obviously get the opposite scroll, so you can have two scrolls. Once you have both, you go to the tower in the middle. That's how you pass." Mayu scoffed, and then grinned at Sasuke with teasing eyes. "Honestly, Sasuke, it doesn't take a genius to figure _that_ out!" She laughed arrogantly as she crossed her arms, feeling superior. Her superior reign didn't last very long because Sasuke delivered a swift, hard punch to her head. "_Itai_…! My master has beaten me for my disrespect! _Oh_, the pain...!" Mayu fell to her knees and clutched her head. Her tears were virtually like waterfalls, pouring out of her eyes.

"Quit being so melodramatic," Sasuke crossed his arms and turned away. He didn't feel the least bit guilty over what he had done. All around them, genin sweated, nervous smiles tugged at their lips. Anko chuckled at the amusing scene.

"Like the girl said, you are to bring both scrolls to the tower," she stated. "Oh, yeah… By the way, the test has a time limit. If you can't get both scrolls and make it to the tower in five days, you automatically fail." Multiple teams gasped in astonishment; Chouji's gasp being the loudest. After all, five days without food was basically the end of the world. Survival test, indeed.

"If you get hungry, all you have to do is look around. There are plenty of things to eat in the forest," Anko stated, purposely looking towards Chouji. The bigger genin looked almost relieved.

"Yeah, but… that's not the only thing the forest has plenty of. There are carnivorous animals and man-eating plants in there as well," Kabuto thought it would be nice to let the others know.

"_Arrgh_! Why did you always have to open your big fat mouth?! Why don't you hold all of our hands and tell us step by step what to expect since you're so naturally gifted with knowledge?!" Mayu shouted. "Some of us like being quite in suspense, ya know?!"

"_Something tells me that girl doesn't like me very much,"_ Kabuto thought.

"_I wonder why Sakura-chan doesn't like that guy,"_ Naruto thought, confused.

"_What are the odds that she's PMSing again… Great…"_ Sasuke rolled his eyes, and then wondered why he kept coming back to PMS. It was probably because his mother threw tantrums like this during her time. Yeah, that was it.

"Well, anyway… This test will also measure endurance behind enemy lines," Anko placed her hands on her hips. "This is designed to be a grueling test and I'm sure some of you won't be up to the challenge." Shikamaru raised his hand and asked if he could quit while taking the test. "Of course not. You can't say 'I quit' in the middle of a battle and expect to just walk away. You'll get yourself killed like that."

"Troublesome…" was his response.

"There are also some ways you can get disqualified," Anko continued, and then began listing the reasons a team could fail, one being not to open the scrolls until you reach the tower. "Okay, we're done. Each team, take your consent forms and exchange them over there for your scrolls." She pointed over to a small booth, where three ninja were sitting. "After that, each team, pick a gate and wait there until you're let inside." Anko gave a lazy wary type of sigh. "Oh, and a word of advice… JUST DON'T DIE!"

Mayu blinked in surprise. That expression then turned into a dreary look. "Thanks for the encouragement, Anko-sensei…" she muttered with her shoulders hunched over. No wonder not many make it out of the forest. The support she gave was horrible!

"No problem, pinkie!" Anko grinned with child-like innocence.

Mayu grumbled.

* * *

It wasn't long before the group of genin broke off into their teams. Some of them, like Sasuke and Naruto, decided to read their consent forms on their own. It was because of this that Mayu was currently glaring down at her chicken butt-haired styled teammate. He was sitting against the large rock. He didn't seem to notice Mayu's presence. She guessed that he was too busying looking around at everyone else. Her pink eyebrow twitched.

Anko stopped a few feet from the two. _"That Uchiha seems to be really involved with this test," _she thought. A smirk appeared as her vision shifted up to the girl above him. _"A little too involved, I'd say."_ She watched a grin slowly materialize on the girl's face. She suddenly leapt off the rock and crashed into the unknowing Uchiha. Anko chuckled as he began yelling at her while rubbing his abused head. The girl only fell over laughing. "This _is_ going to be fun," she muttered.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" Sasuke almost growled. "Do you get little kicks by doing that?!"

"What, did you think I was another fan girl?" Mayu smirked, while Sasuke visibly paled.

"I told you not to ever talk about that!"

"Yah, yah…" She waved him off, uncaringly. "That's what you get for leaving me behind!"

Sasuke's eyes turned white and angry as he towered over Mayu, who looked quite terrified at the moment. "That's what you're _supposed_ to do!" He hoisted the girl up and gave her a swift kick in the rump, which sent her flying. "Now go read the form and leave me the hell alone!" he called after all.

Mayu landed a few feet away on her back. _"Why does Sasuke treat me this way…?"_ she thought, standing. She rubbed her poor mistreated butt as she stalked away from the pissing Uchiha. She held the paper in front of her face. Mind as well read the darn thing before signing it. Her pink eyebrows furrowed together as she read some of the things the form said. It was ridiculous! If says that if one is on the brink of death, no medical attention will be provided if the time limit's not over! "This sick sadists!"

"Sakura-chan…!" A voice caused Mayu to look up from her paper. She saw Ino and her team coming towards her. She paused her walk as the bleach-blond kunoichi reached her.

"Ino-chan, how's it going?" Mayu asked, smiling. Ino laughed haughtily as if she ruled the world. The green-eyed girl took a step back, as did Shikamaru and Chouji.

"It's going _great_! I got kissed by Sasuke-kun!" She punched the sky with her fist. Mayu wondered why the sky never punched back. The sky was a wuss, that's why. "Sakura-chan, you're the coolest friend ever! Getting Sasuke-kun to kiss me, I mean. I could die happy right at this moment." Mayu smirked.

"Yeah, he's scared of me now. I can totally get him to do anything I want!" She puffed out her chest proudly.

"Hey… I wanted to ask you something…" Ino hesitated before speaking again. "What or who made you quit liking Sasuke-kun all of a sudden? It's not like you to give up."

"I didn't give up! I just didn't want him anymore, that's all!" Mayu replied indignantly. "Besides," she smiled. "I found someone bigger and better than lil ol' Sasuke!"

"Nani…?! Better than Sasuke-kun?! I don't believe it!"

Mayu looked around, grinned, and then pointed out the person that was supposedly better than Uchiha Sasuke. "_Aaahhh_!" Ino screamed in disgust when her blue eyes inspected who Mayu was pointing to. "That hair, that outfit… th-those eyebrows! _Ew_…!" She turned back to her friend with a look of disbelief. "You don't mean that green freak, do you?!"

Mayu nodded. "That's the one!" she replied with a toothy grin. Ino gaped at her like she'd grown an extra head in three seconds flat. What happened to her friend? Had she lost her mind?!

"Does he have some type of jutsu on you? I'll go kick his ass for you!"

"Okay, okay, so he's not perfect!" Mayu stopped Ino from stomping towards Lee. "What about him?" she asked, pointing towards someone else. Ino blinked.

"Slightly better, but you went from big eyebrows to no eyebrows," she commented.

"Hey…! That's what makes him look like a panda! I like pandas."

"Is this _all_ girls talk about?" Chouji asked his friend.

"Troublesome…" Shikamaru said a shake of his head.

"Okay! We're ready to begin handing out scrolls!" Someone yelled across the field. "Please collect your teammates and make your way over to this area!"

"Oh, guess I got to go! See you around, Ino-chan!" Mayu took off, waving.

Five minutes later, she met up with her teammates. They were already in line. Naruto greeted her with his normal foxy grin. "Hey, Sakura-chan!" Mayu smiled in return.

"Did you both sign yours?" she asked.

"Yup! I'm raring to go now!" Naruto answered.

"And what about you?"

"_Ano_… See, what had happened was-"

"You're hopeless." Sasuke handed her a pencil, and then turned around. Mayu grinned nervously, and then pressed her form against Sasuke's back. She quickly signed her name.

"Arigatou!" Mayu returned the pencil to him.

"Yeah, yeah…" Sasuke also took her form, and then handed both his and her forms to Naruto. "Lucky that you came. We're next." Naruto looked like a ball of enthusiasm.

"I can't wait!" he squealed.

"Next!" A shout came from behind the curtain. The three quickly moved forward. Naruto handed in the forms and waited. The man stared at the top form. "Okay, I'm pretty sure your name isn't Fifth Hokage, but since I don't care," he gave Naruto a Heaven scroll. "Here ya go!"

The team walked out from behind the curtain after successfully hiding their scroll. "What a nice guy," Naruto commented. Sasuke rolled his eyes, while Mayu grinned. It took a few minutes, but pretty soon, each team had their scroll. Anko told them to go to their gate and wait there.

"I call 12!" Mayu shouted, grabbing her teammates and running towards that gate.

"Do you really have to be a moron about it?" Sasuke inquired once the world stopped spinning. Mayu had taken them in circles before actually finding the gate. Naruto had fallen over with swirls in his eyes.

"What can I say? I'm just excited, scared, and freaked out all at the same time!" Mayu tightened her headband. "This is going to be crazy."

"Crazy as in bad ass!" Naruto jumped up from his dizzy state.

The man at their gate shook his head and muttered a "kids these days" under his breath. He looked at his watch and realized that it was time to unlock the gate. He pulled a key out of his pocket and proceeded to do so. Naruto watched him. If possible, his excitement kicked up a notch.

_"Oh man…"_ Mayu groaned, holding her stomach. _"I suddenly feel sick as if I'm about to get on a roller coaster…"_ Sasuke heard Mayu's groan and looked towards her. He noticed the look of apprehension immediately. He placed a hand on the back of her head.

"You choose now to get jittery?" Mayu shook his hand off. She swallowed, successfully suppressing her anxiety.

"I'm fine…" she muttered. "Arigatou… bird brain."

"Don't worry, Sakura-chan…! I'll protect you! … Maybe if he's nice, I'll protect Sasuke-teme, too!" Naruto patted Sasuke and Mayu's back. The former receiving a harsher pat than the latter. Sasuke pushed the blond away.

"As if you could!"

"Sasuke-teme…!"

"Alright, heads up, you maggots…!" Luckily, Anko's voice reached far. It successfully stopped Naruto from retorting. "The second part of the test has begun!" The gates flung open. Naruto and his team stepped inside the gate. They had no idea what they were in for.

Well, Mayu did, but she doesn't count…

* * *

I'm told Mayu-chan's name means cocoon, so in case you're wondering. Please review.


	3. He's a ColdHearted Snake

* * *

A scream caused Naruto and Sasuke to flinch. They looked back at their teammate. She, too, was looking back. The two boys noticed that she was shaking. "Would you stop screaming already? You've been doing it for the past six minutes," Sasuke muttered. "It was just another bug. It's not going to come and get you." The green-eyed rounded on him with a pissed off look.

"Thanks for the reassurance, bird brain, but that wasn't me this time!" Mayu turned her head back towards where the scream came from. She sharply turned around again. "And for the record... that thing was _huge_!" Naruto suddenly laughed.

"Yeah, that's what she said!"

Two pairs of eyes glared at the laughing blond. He was completely ignorant of their fierce looks. Naruto abruptly stopped laughing. Mayu stepped to him with a concerned look on her face. "What is it, Naruto?"

"... Got to pee," he answered, and then proceeded to turn around and fiddle with his pants.

Before Naruto could unzip, Mayu kicked him in the back, causing him to fall over. "Don't piss in front of me!" She pointed in a random direction. "Go do your business somewhere else!" Naruto stood up with a pout, and then walked away. Mayu crossed her arms. That kid had not an ounce of decency in him, did he? Mayu heard Sasuke chuckle. "Nani?!"

"Your face is red." Mayu stammered out an embarrassed 'F you!'

Moments later, Naruto's moaning reached their ears, signaling that he was done. Did he really have to do that after he was finished? No. Mayu made a disgusted face as he stumbled through a bush. "I peed a lot!" Naruto fixed his pants with a satisfied sigh. "That felt good!" He walked over to the two with a goofy smile.

"Naruto, couldn't you have-" Green eyes scanned over her teammate. A small frown emerged on her face. She stood beside Sasuke as she finished. "Gone before we entered the forest?!"

The Uchiha suddenly punched the blond ninja. Blood shot out of his mouth as he was sent back. Naruto's back hit a tree as a strangled gasp came from his mouth. He looked at Sasuke in surprise as he rubbed his chin. "What did you do that for...?"

Mayu hit him over the head before he could retort. "What the hell are you doing?!" Sasuke looked towards her in rage. Her punches hurt and there's the fact that he bit his tongue as well. "Stop treating Naruto as if you hate him! I know you got a rivalry thing going on, but that's no excuse!"

"But he's-"

"No buts…! Jeez! You're acting like a five-year-old!" Mayu walked over to the sitting Naruto and knelt beside him. She wrapped a comforting arm around Naruto's shoulder. "Its okay now, Naruto-kun! I'm here."

Sasuke's eye twitched. For unknown reasons, his anger spiked seeing Mayu like that. It pissed him off for some reason. He didn't like it at all. And anyway, she had interrupted before he could reveal that that Naruto was a fake. But if he said something now, the imposter would surely use Mayu's position to his or her advantage. He bared his teeth in irritation.

"I'm okay, Sakura-chan…" Naruto mumbled.

"Let me fix you up a bit," Mayu replied, fishing in her pouch. "I have something that'll take the sting away.

"That's great…" Blue eyes were trained on Sasuke. _"He probably has the scroll. He looks the strongest out of all of them." _His eyes moved to the girl. She was still busying looking through her pouch to notice. _"I'll take her hostage."_

Before the ninja could make a move, however, he found a kunai at his neck. Sasuke's eyes expanded in surprise. _"She knew this whole time…?" _He slowly walked towards the two ninja who were still on the ground. Blue eyes looked down at the kunai, and then to the smiling female, who held the weapon, dangerously close to his throat.

"S-Sakura-chan…?! What are-" The tip of the kunai pressed against his skin. He stopped talking immediately. Sasuke moved at a quicker pace. He came to a stop in front of the pair.

"Start talking! What did you do with Naruto?!"

"I… I don't know what you're talking about."

"Ya know, dude, my hand trembles when I'm angry," Mayu commented. Naruto's eyes grew wide. The girl had purposely shaken her hand, which held the kunai. "Tell us where Naruto is and maybe I'll calm down."

"B-But I _am_ Naruto!"

"Then where is the scar that was on your cheek?" Sasuke asked, narrowing his eyes.

The imposter's face paled at his question. "And besides that, your shuriken holster is on the wrong side," he continued. "Our teammate is right-handed." The imposter frowned.

"So you figured it out, huh?" With a popping noise, smoke covered the poser's body. A sudden yelp was heard and a kick to the stomach sent Sasuke flying back.

The Uchiha sat up, clutching his abdomen. His dark eyes were trained on the evaporating smoke. After it fully vanished, he saw that a strange Rain ninja, who was wearing an even stranger outfit, equipped with some type of breathing device, had his arm wrapped around Mayu's neck. His other hand held a kunai at her stomach. The Rain ninja laughed at how the tables had quickly turned. These Leaf ninja really _were_ rookies! He almost felt bad for doing this… almost.

"You bastard…! Let her go!" Sasuke finally stood up straight. This was not good. The enemy already had two hostages. This nameless ninja had taken both his teammates while he could do nothing. Not being in control sucked big time.

"Oh, I'll let her go," the name ninja chuckled. "As soon as you hand over your scroll!" Sasuke bared his teeth. Of course he wanted the scroll. His eyes shifted over to Mayu. She looked abnormally calm for someone in her situation. Unless of course… Sasuke's eyes widen.

His hands quickly ran through hand signs. "**Fire Style: Phoenix Fire Jutsu**!" Sasuke blew several balls of fire from his mouth. They all shot towards the enemy. He cried out in shock as he jumped away. The little twerp had actually put his teammate's life on the line? His feet landed on a tree branch. Sasuke looked up at him with a smirk on his face.

"You would attack your own teammate?!" The enemy pointed the kunai at him. "If I had known you hated her, I wouldn't have taken her. Oh well, I guess I'll do away with her right now!" He plunged the kunai deep in Mayu's flesh.

"SASUKE…!" Naruto's shout echoed through the forest. It wasn't long before the loud mouth ninja was standing next to the Uchiha.

"How did you escape?!" His shout of disbelief caused Naruto to grin. He stuck up his middle finger at the Rain ninja.

"Don't underestimate me or my team!" Naruto exclaimed. The foreign ninja looked incredulous, and then his gaze shifted to the girl, only to realize that he was holding a small tree trunk in his arm the entire time.

"NO!"

"You've…" The sudden voice caused the ninja to gasp, and then turn. "… been _logged_!" Mayu shouted, punching the surprised ninja. His body twisted as he fell from the tree branch. Sasuke swiftly jumped up, holding a kunai. Not missing a beat, he pierced the enemy's skin, moving the kunai deeper and deeper.

"Try to stab my teammate, will you?" Sasuke mocked as the ninja gaped at him. Blood spattered on the Uchiha's face, but he didn't seem to care at the moment. The second his deadly weapon made contact with the Rain ninja, a feeling of satisfaction came over him. Revenge was sweet… He could only imagine how killing his brother would make him feel. It gave him chills just thinking about it.

The Rain shinobi, oblivious to Sasuke's dark thoughts, grunted in pain. He pushed him away, and then fled, thinking about how unlucky he was to have come alone. Blood gushed out of his open chest wound as he ran away. Sasuke's feet finally touched the forest floor. He panted lightly. His adrenalin was still rushing through his veins from that small encounter. Mayu jumped from her position on the tree branch. She now stood beside Naruto, joining him in looking at their teammate as if he'd gone crazy.

"That was exciting, ne, Sasuke?" Mayu broke the silence. Sasuke straightened up and turned to his team. He nodded slowly. His heart rate was decreasing by the second. He released a slow breath, and then opened his eyes again. The Sharingan had reverted back to dark eyes. He hadn't even realized that he'd triggered them.

"I didn't get to do a thing!" Naruto pouted while poking his two index fingers together. He looked very sad by this fact. Once again, Sasuke had saved the day while he was too busy tied up behind a giant tree. Mayu have a reassuring pat on the back and told him that there was always a next time. Naruto cheered up a little bit, promising himself that he would help out in the future.

"Hey, we need to get out of here before that guy shows up again with his team," Sasuke stated. He jumped away, leaving Naruto and Mayu to follow after him. The two nodded, and then moved after him. Once the three reached a good enough place, they stopped. "If you two didn't realize, that was a bad situation for us." Sasuke sat down on the ground. Naruto and Mayu followed suite.

"You're telling me!" Mayu scoffed as she dug around in her pouch again. She pulled out some type of wipe and handed it to Sasuke. "I thought we had that guy." She sighed heavily as Sasuke began wiping his face. He tried to give it back to her, but Mayu gave him a look that said 'You must be losing it!' Sasuke rolled his eyes and tossed the dirty wipe over his shoulder.

"Yeah," he continued. "I didn't realize that it wasn't Naruto until a moment after he came closer to us." Sasuke pressed his elbow against his raised knee. "If the three of us gets separated, don't trust anyone, even if they look one of us. There's a possibility that an enemy will transform into us for a chance to get the scroll or worse." Naruto nodded his head in understanding.

"Wait, how we know if we're talking to our real teammates?" he asked, confused.

"Let's decide on a password right now," Sasuke answered.

"Password…?" Naruto blinked. Sasuke nodded as he continued speaking.

"If a different password is given, assume that that person is the enemy no matter what." He narrowed his eyes a bit. "It's either the password or nothing, got it?"

Naruto and Mayu nodded their heads. They had to admit, it was a pretty good plan. "I'm only going to say this once, so listen carefully." He paused for a moment. "First you will ask for the ninja song 'Ninki.' The answer should be 'It is a good chance when a large number of enemies are making a scene. There are no hideouts even in a quiet place. It is important for a ninja to know the right time. The time when the enemy is tired, and has his guard down.' That's it."

Naruto visibly sweated. There was no way he was going to remember such a long password. Password…? That was a friggin' _passphrase_! Naruto frowned and looked to his female teammate for help. She was currently staring at Sasuke. Her mouth opened and four words came out.

"Fuck that, no way!"

Sasuke nearly fell over in shock. She was honestly protesting?! Sasuke sat back up and glared at her. Mayu turned her head away; a look of defiance crossed her features. "What do you mean 'no'?"

"I mean, I'm not saying that long password. I refuse to say it!" Mayu huffed lightly, and then turned back to her glaring teammate. She crossed her arms to further enhance her displeasure with Sasuke's password. The boy slowly breathed out, trying to control the anger that had bubbled up inside him.

"Why?" he asked in a calm voice.

"It's obvious why!" Mayu stood up. "That password is too darn long! You know how much oxygen I'm going to loose by saying that?! I should—I should smack you for suggesting that!"

"This matter…!" Sasuke clenched his fist. "This matter is not up for debate!"

"You're the one that said 'Let's decide' and I'm _deciding_ to veto that right out the window!" Mayu turned to her blond teammate, who was unusually quiet during this argument. "What do you think, Naruto, new password or Sasuke's long, crazy maze-like password?"

"I think I'm going to go with Sakura-chan on this one." He nodded his head and smiled. Mayu grinned at Sasuke, feeling triumphant.

The Uchiha sighed heavily and frowned. _"The idiots are revolting,"_ he thought. "Fine! You come up with something better, if you can!" He gave a pointed look at Mayu. That look was ignored because the girl was too happy over her apparent win against Sasuke to notice. She dropped to her knees with a smile on her face.

"Okay, my password is this…" she began. "It's quick and easy, so you won't forget it. 'Thug ninja for life.'" She patted her chest with her fist twice and held up her rock fist. The 'hand sign' was simple enough. The pinky and index fingers were straight up while the ring, middle, and thumb were kept curled up in the palm. Sasuke remembered that Mayu had showed him and Naruto on one of their earlier missions. "See? Easy."

"I am not saying that." Sasuke shook his head. "It's ridiculous. I'm not saying it." His answer was quick and to the point. He didn't care that Mayu's smile had dropped. Uchiha Sasuke had an image to uphold and his image would be shattered if he did something like that. No way was he going to be caught doing that!

Mayu huffed again, and then turned her undivided attention to Naruto, who was smiling. Apparently, he liked the new password a lot. Mayu's smile returned as she turned back to Sasuke. "Well, that settles that." Sasuke grumbled under his breath. He was saying something about how he was not going to do it. "If we get separated and you say that long password that you came up with, I'm going to attack you, bird brain. Real you or not." Sasuke only grumbled some more.

"Alright, now that that's over, what do we do now?" Naruto asked, standing. Sasuke and Mayu stood as well.

"Well, I'm keeping the scroll," he announced.

"Wait! Why do you get to-" Naruto's question was suddenly interrupted.

Something, out of nowhere, had struck him in the face. Whatever it was, it was sharp and caused the blond shinobi to bleed. His head turned towards the direction he thought the cutting thing came from. "What was that?" His question went unanswered as he, as well as his teammates, stared in the same direction.

It was relatively quiet for a moment. Sasuke took a step forward in confusion. Suddenly, a giant gust of wind came forth. It was stronger than any other normal wind. That led Sasuke to believe that they had another enemy on their hands, a stronger more efficient enemy. He quickly jumped out of the way of the wind's past. He briefly heard Mayu complaining that a bug flew in her eye, but that was quickly silenced by a loud noise. After the forest stopped shaking and the wind stopped howling, Sasuke noticed, from his hiding spot, that his teammates weren't around. Hopefully, the two were also in hiding.

Sasuke also noticed the huge furrow in the ground. It seemed to stretch for miles. It was slightly impressive, but Sasuke was sure that he could do the same with one of his jutsu. The sound of a twig snapping caught his ears. He quickly pushed himself from the bush he was hiding under. A startled gasp made him quickly turn. He saw Mayu, nearly a foot away from him. She was holding up her kunai in defense; she also had a couple of shuriken between her fingers.

"You scared the crap outta me!" Mayu gave a relieved sigh as she moved closer to him. Sasuke back up and held up his own kunai.

"Don't come any closer!" His sudden shout caused the girl to stop. She frowned lightly. "Say the password first!"

"What about you?! Why don't you say it first?" Sasuke almost lowered his weapon. He knew that condescending defiant tone anywhere. She would be the one that made him say the password first. But then again, it could be a really good disguise.

"Okay, we'll say it together. How does that sound?" Mayu seemed to mull it over in her head, and then nod.

"Thug ninja for life," they both said, and then patted their chest twice with their fists, which quickly turned into rock fists.

Mayu sighed as she lowered her weapons. She didn't remove the shuriken from her hands though. "I am so glad you said the right password, bird brain." She grinned as Sasuke also lowered his weapon.

"Yeah, whatever…"

"_Itai_…!" A groan filled their ears, causing the two to turn. They saw Naruto running towards them. "Hey, everyone, how are you?" Sasuke and Mayu held up their kunai. Naruto stopped in his tracks.

"Before you come any closer, tell us the password," Sasuke ordered.

"Oh, yeah! Gomen, gomen!" Naruto grinned. "Thug ninja for life." He didn't move. Sasuke and Mayu waited a moment, and yet the blond did not move an inch. The two threw their weapons. The girl also threw her shuriken.

Naruto just barely moved in time. The weapons whizzed pass him just as he fell to the ground. "What are you doing?!" he exclaimed in surprise. He sat up looking confused.

"You're not Naruto!" Mayu pointed an excusing finger.

"This time we have someone good enough to dodge my attack," Sasuke pointed out.

"What are you guys talking about? I said the password correctly!" Naruto complained. "Why are you attacking me?"

"You said the password correctly all right," Mayu began, frowning.

"But you didn't do the action that followed," Sasuke finished. Blue eyes grew slightly wide at the information. "And besides that fact, the movement you used to dodge that is different from the normal Naruto. Show your real self, faker!"

The imposter grinned. A tongue darted out of his mouth and licked his lips. These actions of his caused a shiver to run up Mayu's spine. Her eyes expanded as her mouth dropped open. "I see." With a small boom type noise, the faker was hidden by a large cloud of smoke. When the smoke vanished, it stood in Naruto's place.

Sasuke noticed that it was the same it that winked at him before they entered the forest. Mayu recognized this person right away. She stood a step back as that… _monster _conversed with Sasuke about the password. Sweat slid down her face as she continued to stare at the enemy. Its tongue appeared again. That tongue… that creepy tongue that gave her nightmares, she'd know it anywhere. _"Oro-teme…"_ she thought, taking another step back.

Her teammate noticed her movement, but kept his eyes on the enemy. He wondered why Mayu was moving away. Was she that scared of this guy? No matter… Sasuke would take this person on. She didn't have to get involved if she was this scared.

The person suddenly pulled out a scroll. It was the Earth scroll. It was the scroll that they needed in order to complete this exam! Mayu bit her lip as the person chuckled. "You want our Earth scroll, right?" The tone that it used was almost mocking. "Since you three have the Heaven scroll." It chuckled again, and then wrapped its long tongue around the scroll and forced it into its mouth.

Mayu and Sasuke gapped as they watched the scroll go down its throat. _"Now that's an esophagus…!" _The Uchiha grimaced as it licked its lips again. The Grass ninja didn't seem to mind the disgusted looks it was getting from the two twelve-year-olds.

"Let's begin…" It licked its lips and bowed its head. "The battle over our scrolls…" The two ninja gasped.

"We don't want it!" Mayu exclaimed, but was ignored.

"By putting our lives on the line!"

When Mayu looked into its reptile-like eyes, she could really see her death. Blood… There was so much blood being sprayed everywhere. On the ground, on the tree branches, blood was everywhere. Cuts and bruises were scattered on her body. Her throat was slit, her wrists were cut, and several holes were all over her chest area, blood gushed out of all of them. The vision of her untimely death ended with a kunai being driven deep in her skull.

For a moment, she, as well as Sasuke, was almost completely immobile. Their bodies trembled. Their faces were frozen in a state of fear. Finally, their muscles gave out and they dropped to the ground. Sasuke panted heavily. That feeling of dread and horror washed over him. He hunched over and puked. Never before had he experienced something so… intense. His dark eyes shifted over to Mayu. She was still shaking. Her eyes remained open and scared. _"She's in a state of shock!"_ Sweat ran down his face as his eyes looked towards the Grass shinobi. _"It was… just intent to kill, but the damage it did to my body… I can barely move! Who is this person?"_

_"This isn't good… I need to run!"_ Mayu watched as the person smirked. _"I didn't think it would be this bad. My legs, they won't move! I'm going to die… Orochimaru… is going to kill me! We're going to die…"_ She could not stop her body from shaking. No matter what she did, she couldn't move an inch. Mayu stared, it was really the only thing she could do, as the enemy moved towards her and Sasuke. It took out two kunai, one for each of them. _"I really am going to die! No… Move, you stupid body! Move…!"_

The Grass ninja threw both kunai. They were coming towards the two genin. Mayu did the only thing she could do. She closed her eyes and prayed that Sasuke would snap out of it. She remembered that it was Sasuke that saved both himself and Sakura and the original, right, so it should happen. On account of being paralyzed, Mayu didn't feel someone's touch. Nor did she feel herself being lifted.

She opened her eyes and breathed deeply, only to turn and puke over the side of the branch she was sitting on. When she was finished, she put a hand over her throat. Her pupils were dilated as she panted heavily. That was the worst feeling that she'd ever had. Seeing and feeling were definitely two different things! She swallowed hard as green eyes turned to Sasuke. He seemed to be in worse shape than she was.

His thigh was bloody, soaking his white shorts red. He looked so frightened and vulnerable. His body still trembled. He had obviously been scared. He looked as if he was more scared than Mayu. His eyes were trained elsewhere as if searching for something. She remembered… Sasuke replaced his fear with pain and that's why he was bleeding now. "Sasuke…" Her voice shook. Surprised, she covered her mouth with her hand.

_"What's the matter with me?" _She screamed at herself. _"I was acting so—so useless! I should have done something, anything! I relied on Sasuke to get me out of that situation. He did and I'm grateful to him, but… I hate it! I acted like her! I was Sakura in that moment!"_ Mayu looked down at the bark of the tree. Tears welled up in her eyes. She felt embarrassed and angry. _"I couldn't do anything at all!"_ She clenched her eyes shut. _"I can't allow myself to do nothing again! I won't allow it! There's no way I'm ever going to rely on Sasuke or Naruto again! And I won't run away!"_

A shadow suddenly loomed over the two. Mayu looked towards her right. If someone were to look inside her, they'd see that apart of her died. And it was all because of what she saw. There was a giant brown snake head right in front her. It was hissing menacingly. Forget not running away! "_AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH_! GIANT SNAKE, RUN!!" Mayu quickly jumped backwards away from the snake. Her conscious just shook its head.

_You won't run away, huh?_

Mayu stifled her conscious and focused on Sasuke, who was in mid air. Luckily, he had heard her scream and jumped out of the way right before the snake could take a bite. The girl landed on a branch and watched the snake slither up another branch. "It's going after Sasuke!" Green eyes looked towards her teammate to see that he had thrown shuriken at the snake head. He had screamed as he did it. "He still must be shaken up."

The snake fell. Its head hit a branch. It was so heavily that it nearly cracked the branch. Blood slid down from its open wounds which Sasuke had caused. If there was one thing Mayu hated more than bugs, it was definitely snakes. She gaped at the corpse of the snake, surprised that it was still moving. A humanoid head pushed through the skin of the snake. _"Oro-teme was in there the entire time?!"_

The green-eyed kunoichi trembled. It was moving its tongue again. It was so slimy and disturbing to watch. She almost looked away. The Grass ninja suddenly launched forward, going towards Sasuke as if it were a snake. Its body had actually stretched that far. Sasuke shouted as it came closer.

"Oh no!" Mayu quickly dug around in her pouch for something, anything that could help her teammate. _"He's not moving!"_ Suddenly, several shuriken and kunai had embedded into the bark right in front of the Grass shinobi's path, causing it to halt. Mayu looked towards where the weapons had come from. She was almost surprised to see Naruto standing there, with his arms crossed, looking like he was some type of hero. From his posture, she was sure that her blond teammate was about say something instead of help. But she was still happy to see him, anyway.

"_Oi_, Sasuke, Sakura-chan…" he began. "Thug ninja for life!" He finished, patting his chest with his fist and holding up his rock fist. A relieved smile crossed Mayu's face. Seeing, at least, one of her teammates looking fearless gave her a boost of confidence.

"Naruto…! You're so cool!" She showed her appreciation by complimenting the blond. He smirked, feeling victorious even though he had yet to fight.

"Naruto, you must be here to show off and helping us, but don't get involved!" Sasuke's shout caused the blond ninja to look at his teammate in confusion. If he didn't know any better, he'd say that he heard Sasuke's voice tremble a bit. But this was Sasuke! He doesn't tremble. "Run away! This person is way above our level!"

"It looks like you've escaped that giant snake, Naruto-kun…" The Grass ninja finally spoke up. He stared lazily up at Naruto, slightly annoyed that he was stopped. The blond shinobi stared down at the person. His body was tied around a tree branch; it looked similar to a snake's body. Naruto slowly came to the conclusion that it was this person that controlled the snake that ate him.

"Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! Looks like you were picking on the weak, _eh_?" He pointed a finger down at the Grass ninja. "Now that I, Uzumaki Naruto, am here, I'm going to beat you to a pulp!"

Green eyes looked towards Sasuke. Mayu frowned again. It looked as if her teammate was still scared. He was looking back and forth between the Grass ninja and Naruto. Mayu figured that he must've been thinking of a plan. She noticed that he shut off his Sharingan. This only caused her worry to bubble up. _"What's he doing?"_

"Matte…!" Sasuke got the Grass ninja's attention.

"_Eh_…?" Mayu noticed that he had lost all forms of a defense. His shoulders were sagged and his head was down. Sasuke's hand disappeared into his pouch. When he pulled it out, he was holding the Heaven Scroll.

"I'll give you the Heaven Scroll." The Uchiha announced.

"Nani…?!" Mayu's eyes were wide. There was no way that Sasuke was _that_ scared… right? To purposely give away the only chance they had to becoming chuunin was utterly prosperous!

"Please," Sasuke continued. "Take this and leave us in peace." He paid no attention to the shouts of protest from his two teammates, and only told them to shut up.

"I see, you're smart." The Grass ninja finally made a move to get up from the branch. "The only hope that the prey have from the predator… is to hand over something else to eat to save itself." Sasuke and the Grass ninja stared at each other for a moment before Sasuke finally tossed the scroll towards the enemy. The person reached out to catch the scroll.

Naruto watched in disbelief as the scroll moved through mid air. Without hesitating, he leaped from his spot and caught the scroll before it reached the Grass ninja. Naruto propelled himself from one tree branch towards the one Sasuke was standing on. The Uchiha rounded on him in a frightened rage. "Stupid…! Don't butt in!" His shout fell on deaf ears as Naruto turned. "Don't you realize the situation we're in?!"

No holds bar, Naruto punched Sasuke in the face, sending the Uchiha towards another branch. He quickly composed himself, so that he could land straight. Wiping the blood from his chin, Sasuke demanded to know why he was hit. Instead of answering right away, Naruto continued to pant. He finally opened his mouth to speak. "Tell me what our password is!" Naruto growled. Sasuke only looked confused. "There's no way that you know our password because you're not Sasuke! You're a fake, aren't you?!"

"Baka…! I am the real one!" Sasuke glared at his teammate. As if they was a reason that Naruto could doubt he was the real one.

"You liar!" Naruto exclaimed, bowing his head. "The coward I see in front of me is no Uchiha Sasuke! I would never call someone as pathetic as you my rival!" The blond ninja finally looked up, glaring at Sasuke. "I don't know how strong this… weird person is, but there's no guarantee that we'll be free to go even if we hand over our scroll!" Naruto continued, ignoring everyone else around. His words were directed at Sasuke only. "You're the one who is scared, the one who doesn't understand the situation!"

The Grass ninja chuckled lightly as he finally stood. "Naruto-kun…" he began, causing the two boys to look towards him (they finally figured out that it was a man, although in the back of their minds, they still weren't sure). "You're right." He moved his tongue in a circular motion. Sasuke's eyes widen. "I just have to…" He lifted his sleeve to reveal some type of marking on his arm. "Kill you all to take the scroll!" He bit his thumb and wiped the blood on the marking.

Naruto glared, not liking the feeling he got from seeing this. He ran towards the Grass ninja, kunai in hand. "Stop! Run, Naruto!" Sasuke shouted, but he was ignored. The blond ninja had lost faith in his comrade. He moved closer to the Grass ninja.

"Summoning Jutsu…" he calmly stated as he formed the correct hand signs. A giant smoke cloud appeared, causing Naruto to halt in his attack.

Mayu winced as a forceful wind picked up. She hoped that it wasn't the giant purple snake. She really didn't want to see that! Naruto was blown back by the wind, which actually saved him from being crushed by the giant brown snake that was summoned. He landed on a branch. He panted heavily as he stared up at the hissing, giant snake. The Grass ninja, who was standing on top of the snake, chuckled. "How cute. What cute prey I have this time."

It was about that time when Mayu started to think. She slowly backed away from the fight. It was clear to her that she would be no help in this type of situation. But that didn't mean she was going to just give up. Once she was out of sight, she quickly made her way towards the ground. Since everyone else was high in the tree branches, they didn't notice her touch the ground. In fact, they probably didn't see her because they were up so high.

She looked up. Luckily, she could still see… if she strained her eyes a bit. Mayu could also hear Naruto. He was growling and screaming. She could also hear the sound of decaying branches breaking. She realized that he must've gone berserk by now. "Okay, if I remember it right… Naruto should fall right around that area after Oro-teme seals his red chakra." Her eyes focused on a certain spot. She walked over to it and looked up. No longer could she see her teammates, but she did see the snake's head hovering over a tree branch.

_"Meaning, Naruto stopped it from getting to Sasuke,"_ Mayu thought. Suddenly, she heard Naruto yelling again. His yells consisted of 'snake bastard!' and 'Let me go!' Then a hiss of pain reached her ears. As soon as it started, it stopped. Mayu narrowed her eyes and waited a few moments. "He should fall… right about…"

_CRASH_

Mayu managed to repress a shout of pain she tried to crawl from underneath her blond teammate. Once she accomplished that, she rubbed her head. _"Itai…! Got the timing wrong!"_ she thought, holding back tears. She had even bit her tongue. Now it hurt like hell! Mayu shook her head and placed two fingers against Naruto's neck. Good thing his heart hadn't stopped. The blond was just unconscious.

Her hands moved over to Naruto's pouch. She reached inside and pulled out several items, taking into account that the scroll was no longer in there. She placed the items besides Naruto's unconscious body and pulled out several items of her own. She looked up again. "WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU, SASUKE?!" Sasuke had heard the shout, but didn't look away from the Grass ninja's eyes. "HOW THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE GOING TO DEFEAT THAT MAN IF YOU CAN'T EVEN DEFEAT A SNAKE! YOU'RE WORTHLESS, USELESS, AND A COWARD!" Mayu paused, briefly thinking that what she was about to say was going too far. But he needed to snap out of it. "WHY DON'T YOU JUST RUNAWAY AND CLING TO YOUR PATHETIC LIFE?!"

Sasuke heart beat quickened. Her words… they cut deeper than anything. They were so similar to what… _he_ had told him before he left. Sasuke closed his eyes and bowed his head. He was suddenly angered. Mayu had shouted at him. Her voice sounded near hysterics. He knew that she didn't know any better, but it still pissed him off. _"No!"_ He looked up. His eyes had turned red again. _"I won't let it end here… for any of us!"_

He glared at the Grass ninja, and for a moment the enemy saw his own death. He shook off the feeling and smirked. "That was some killer intent he has…" His body suddenly started to shake. He looked down in surprise. No, it wasn't his body. It was the snake underneath him.

The snake's body shook, almost causing the Grass ninja to feel as if the ground was shaking. The giant snake suddenly popped out of sight, causing the Grass ninja to fall and land on a tree branch. He stared at the young Uchiha in slight surprise. _"He actually managed to… send it away just with killer intent alone. Something tells me that he's never killed before, and yet he used it…" _He smirked as he narrowed his eyes. _"This will be quite interesting. More interesting than I thought."_

Mayu watched all this happen from a far. She didn't feel the intent to kill at all. She just thought that it was the same as the original plot. She thought the Grass ninja had made the snake disappear, not Sasuke. Mayu looked down at her unconscious teammate for a moment. It wasn't long before Sasuke let out a battle cry. She shook head and began picking up the notes and the weapons. She didn't understand why her teammates felt the need to do that. "Better get started."

She jumped up.

Meanwhile, Sasuke had his hands full, fighting the Grass ninja. So far, with the help of the Sharingan, he could see and invade the enemy's moves. The enemy hadn't hit him yet. Sasuke paused to thank his ancestors for his kekkei genkai as his red eyes stared at the enemy. Suddenly, the Grass ninja sent a giant gust of wind towards him. Quickly moving out of the way of the blast, Sasuke launched himself at the enemy. Taken by surprise, the enemy could only gasp as Sasuke wrapped himself around his body.

Making his body lurch backwards, Sasuke made the both of them to fall over the branch. Now the enemy was falling, head first. He screamed, realizing what the fall could mean. Before he could react, however, his skull crashed into the trunk of the tree, causing the bark to shatter because of the force of impact. The enemy's hands trembled before going completely limp. Sasuke waited a few more seconds before jumping away from the body.

The man's legs also went limp as Sasuke stared. He started to lower his guard until the body transformed into a mound of mud. "Shit…!" He quickly jumped back. If he hadn't his body would be impaled by multiple kunai that rained from an unknown location. Because of his jump back, he realized that there was no longer something holding him up. Thinking quickly, he pulled on the wire that was in his hands. The wire snagged onto a nub of a tree branch. His body swung through the trees _"George, George! George of the Jun—great, I'm starting to sound just like her_…" Sasuke thought as he landed.

He looked back to see if the enemy had followed him. He turned back around, only to see the enemy running towards him with his fist poised to attack. His eyes widen as the fist came about half an inch close to his face. He swiftly leaned backwards onto his hands and watched as the fist passed his face. It seemed to happen at the pace of a turtle. And then it sped up as Sasuke brought his leg up and kicked the enemy in the chin, causing him to go up.

Mayu watched from afar with a shocked, angry look. _"That's my move!!"_ she thought, clenching her fist. _"He's gonna pay for that!"_ She took a step forward out of her hiding place. It was almost time to put her plan in motion.

Sasuke stood up straight just as the enemy came back down. The Grass ninja slammed his fist against Sasuke's head, causing the boy to hunch over. He didn't have time to groan in pain because the enemy used his foot to kick Sasuke away. This time he had time to groan as he fell. He didn't move again. The Grass ninja dropped his stance, and then slowly walked forward. "What a disappointment…" He stared down at the unmoving boy. "Your ancestors weep. The Uchiha clan should thank me for killing you."

Sasuke slowly opened his eyes. He was being mocked. A smirk appeared on his face. Well, he'll show him. The enemy was caught got off guard by the small explosions that happened right behind him. The gasp of surprise didn't go unnoticed by Sasuke. He hopped up from his position and away from the branch. He threw multiple shuriken passed the disoriented ninja. Once the boy landed, he maneuvered his hands so that the shuriken would change course. The wire, which was attached to the shuriken, tied the enemy to a tree branch.

The Grass ninja tried to get out of it, but he was tied down with no way of escaping. Sasuke wasted no time in forming hand signs. "**Fire Style: Dragon Flame Jutsu**!" Using the wires as guides, flames shot towards the tied up enemy. The attack had a direct hit! The fire was so hot, that he burnt a hole through the tree and had the enemy screaming in agony.

The screams stopped and the fire slowly died down. Sasuke panted as he gazed at his enemy. He seemed to be dead. His pants turned into him breathing hard. That attack took a lot out of him. But it was over… It was finally over! He had won.

He felt so relieved that he didn't realize that the enemy was still alive until after he spoke. Sasuke looked up in surprise and slight annoyance. Would this person just die already?! "Such mastery of the Sharingan at a young age. You're a true Uchiha after all…" Sasuke realized that the enemy's voice had changed. He also noticed that the enemy wasn't really from the Grass village. His headband was one from the Sound village.

"Who the hell are you?!" Sasuke shouted. To put it lightly, he was tired of fighting this guy. "What do you want from me?!" The man only chuckled and tossed a Heaven scroll up.

"My name is Orochimaru… As to what I'm after," he chuckled again. "That will be revealed the next time we meet, Sasuke-kun." The scroll began to burn. "And that won't happen until you pass this exam with the best score of all." Sasuke's eyes widen. "But before that, you'll have to defeat the ninja that serve me." The one named Orochimaru created a hand sign, and then his neck grew longer and shot at Sasuke.

The Uchiha could barely see him coming, even with the Sharingan. That's when time seemed to slow down. Sasuke felt a presence behind him, but didn't turn away from the oncoming snake user. He felt a sudden weight on his back and arms wrap around his neck. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a glimpse of pink. _"Mayu…!"_ Next came the sound of flesh being pierced. A grunt of pain followed closely after.

Orochimaru released his prey, only to realize that he had bitten the wrong one. He looked up to see that he had bitten the girl instead. She had a pained look on her face as she somehow managed to glare. "You little bi-" Before he could finish, however, one of the girl's arms unwrapped from Sasuke's neck and jammed a kunai up Orochimaru's chin. The snake user visibly choked on the weapon and stared in shock as the girl howled in pain. That's when Sasuke noticed the explosive note attached to the kunai.

His dark eyes grew wide in shock before jumping away. He heard a sizzling type of noise and looked behind him. What he saw made him pale considerably. Mayu had somehow attached shuriken to her sides—there were four of them, two on each side—and attached to those shuriken were explosive notes, all of them were burning up! He quickly pulled them from her body and threw them at the long neck of Orochimaru.

_**BOOM**_

_**BOOM**_**! **_**BOOM**_**! **_**BOOM**_**! **_**BOOM**_**!**

The blasts sent Sasuke hurdling towards the ground. He hurriedly composed himself so that he could land properly. Once he landed, he looked up to see smoke and flames. He needed to get out of here. He looked around and saw something orange. "Naruto…!" Ignoring Mayu's screaming for a moment, he rushed over to his fallen comrade. He checked, and thankfully, the blond still had a pulse.

He set Mayu on the ground next to Naruto's body. She was still screaming. Sasuke shook his head, and then knocked her out, successfully quieting her. He swallowed hard and thought about the situation he was now faced with. "I have to get them out of here." He managed to put both of his teammates on his shoulders, and then run. He had to find cover, so he could treat them… somehow.

* * *

Sasuke gently set his teammates down. The ground was cool and he hoped that it would somewhat cool their bodies. Both of them had high fevers. That's one of the reasons he picked a spot near a river to stop. The three were currently inside a cave. Sasuke had been lucky to find it. It took some time, but he'd found a perfect place. It was now dark. Outside, the moon lit up the area.

Sasuke stared at his teammates' bodies for a moment longer before standing. There was a river not too far from here. He had to get some of that water. He turned and began walking towards the mouth of the cave. After a quick glance at his team, he took off into the night.

Finding the river was relatively quick. Sasuke looked around before kneeling near the edge. He dipped one of the bottles into the river, waiting for it to fill. Mayu had put a lot of useful things inside her pouch. The bottles were small and empty, but they were handy nonetheless. Sasuke lifted the bottle from the water's current. He then proceeded to do the same with the other two bottles.

After he was finished with the task and putting the caps back on, he stood and began to walk in the direction of the cave. His dark eyes were trained on the ground as he walked at a slow pace. He started to think about all the things that had happened in just one day. He swallowed hard as he thought about Mayu. He couldn't help but notice the strange dark mark that was on her arm. Whatever it was, he knew that it was originally meant for him, and Mayu must've figured that as well. She had taken the bite for him, which was unacceptable. He was seriously going to maim her when she woke up. If she woke up that is…

Sasuke's eyelids lowered.

Not only that, but there was also Naruto. His sudden burst of strength was surprising to say the least. Not to mention his eyes. They had changed. Even as the blond ninja was mocking him, he'd noticed the red in Naruto's eyes. They weren't blue. It was strange. Everything was too strange.

Sasuke looked up and saw that he was almost to the cave. He was about to pick up his pace, but he stopped, noticing that something was entering the cave. His dark eyes widen. "Shit…" he murmured. Slowly and quietly, he moved closer to tell what had entered the cave. "A tiger?! No way…!" That's when he realized that it wasn't just one tiger, it was four tigers. "The universe is officially laughing at me."

He had to do something! He couldn't just let a family of tigers have at his teammates. Maybe he could direct their attention. Sasuke picked up a large rock and threw it. The sound caused the four tigers to emerge from the cave. "There's no blood on their faces. They're safe for the moment." Sasuke watched as the tigers left. When he deemed it safe enough, he quickly moved and entered the cave. He found his comrades the same as he'd left them.

He just _had_ to pick the cave that was home to tigers, didn't he?!

A groan reached his ears, causing him to move forward. Mayu was the one who made the sound. "Hold on, I have to move you guys before I-" A growl interrupted him, causing the Uchiha to flinch. He slowly turned to see that the family had returned. Their snarls made Sasuke's heart beat against his chest. What could he do with no way out?

One of the tigers stepped closer, growling. It was much bigger than the other three. Sasuke frowned. He would have to kill them. The big yellow eyes actually seemed to glare at the intruder. Sasuke realized that _he_ was the intruder. The tiger suddenly stopped snarling and sniffed the air.

"What is it doing?" Sasuke narrowed his eyes. The tiger moved closer again. Sweat glided down Sasuke's face as he watched. The tiger's face was about a few inches away from Sasuke's. The Uchiha had a kunai out and ready. Suddenly, the animal licked the side of Sasuke's face. He grimaced as the scratchy tongue licked him again, this time, his neck was the victim.

Stunned into a stupor, Sasuke didn't do anything as the other three came over and began licking at his skin as well. He finally shook his head and pushed a tiger's tongue away, which was licking a little too close to his personal area. He turned to his teammates to see that two of the tigers were licking at Mayu and Naruto's skin. "What the hell…?" Sasuke forced himself towards them gently pushed away the tiger that was licking at Mayu.

He picked up a bottle and poured water into his cupped hand and splashed it on Mayu's face. He did the same to Naruto. Quickly, he took out two wipes and soaked them in water. He placed the two wipes on his teammates' foreheads after removing their headbands. He sighed heavily after finishing these tasks. "How did it end up like this so quickly?"

One of the tigers curled up behind Mayu. It nudged her, and then yawned. It lay down near her head. Sasuke watched in confusion. He didn't understand why these wild beasts were acting like docile kittens. It didn't make sense, and yet he didn't dare to question it. He was grateful to have this treatment.

Sasuke leaned back, expecting the wall of the cave. Instead, his back was met with something soft and furry. Craning his neck back, he saw that a tiger had gone behind him as well. He relaxed and muttered an 'Arigatou' under his breath. His eyelids lowered. Having tigers around wasn't such a bad idea. They would probably growl if anyone were to come near, so he could rest as well. After all that happened today, he sure did need it.

please review?


	4. Bleed It Out

At a slow pace, Sasuke walked back towards the cave. After getting woken by the hosts, he traveled to the river. He had splashed water on his face, refilled the bottles, and then fished. Three, larger than normal, fish were hooked on wire, which was slung over Sasuke's shoulder. Since entering the forest, it had been a day and a half. He was hesitant about cooking something. The reason being that the smell could attract teams. Even though his team didn't have a scroll now, they could still come to them and attack. And with two teammates down, it would be harder than normal.

_"Naruto... Mayu..."_ the Uchiha thought, sighing heavily. He stared at the ground as he walked. _"How the hell are we going to pass this part of the exam when both of you are down? To add insult to injury, we don't have our scroll anymore."_ Sasuke thought back to what Orochimaru had done to the Heaven scroll. The sounds of animalistic whimpers pulled him out of his thoughts. He looked up. His eyes went slightly wider.

The family of tigers, which had taken his team and himself in, were at the entrance of the cave. Their eyes were focused on whatever it was inside of the cave. They seemed a bit frightened... perhaps even sad. "What the hell?" Sasuke picked up his pace. Upon reaching the mouth of the cave, he pushed the tigers out of the way. What he saw caused his onyx eyes to expand.

"... Sas-Sasuke...?" A hesitant voice spoke. The Uchiha slowly stepped forward. He almost could not believe it. His teammate was standing, two kunai in hand. His teammate's mouth dropped opened. Sasuke took another step forward, this time dropping everything he was holding. "Sasuke!" His teammate dropped the kunai and rushed at him, taking both of them down. "I thought you were eaten!"

Sasuke almost smirked as he sat up. "Only the dope is stupid enough to get eaten by something," he replied. He was shocked to find that his teammates grip on him increased. "M-Mayu...?" The girl didn't say a word. The two stayed like that for a few moments. "What's wrong?"

"You don't know how right you are..."

The green-eyed girl reared back and stared. She blinked before giving the Uchiha a vacant look. "What is it?" he asked. Mayu continued to stare into Sasuke's eyes. It freaked him out a bit. He opened his mouth to repeat his question but Mayu finally spoke up.

"When I ran at you... I kinda... used the last of my strength," she murmured, and then crumpled.

Her sudden weight caused Sasuke's body to fall back to the ground. "H-Hey...! Get off! You're heavy! Move—get off me!" His shouts fell on deaf ears. Sasuke finally stopped his demands and pushed the girl off. She groaned in response. "Honestly, Mayu...! If your body was weak in the first place, you shouldn't have rush at me like that!"

"If I had enough strength, I would so flick you off!"

"Stupid..." Sasuke picked up her body and placed her next to Naruto again. His dark eyes roamed over to the blond. He still had not wakened. And it seemed as if he would stay that way for a while. The Uchiha sighed lightly. Two was better than one, he supposed. Even if one was a total moron.

"So what's with the tigers?" Mayu's voice broke through Sasuke's thoughts. "I noticed that they didn't care that you came."

Sasuke glanced back at the mouth of the cave. The family of tigers had entered the cave, undetected. Dark eyes narrowed before turning back to the kunoichi. "I'm not really sure, myself." He picked up the discarded wipe and squeezed out the rest of the water. "I didn't know that this was their home when I brought you and Naruto here. At first, they seemed like they were going to attack, but then they suddenly started licking the three of us." The tigers moved closer. "I guess that means that they accept us. It doesn't really make sense, but... at the time I didn't care." Sasuke's hand reached for one of the bottles, and then poured some of the cool water onto the wipe. He then placed the bottle to Mayu's lips. "You still have a fever, but it has gone down some."

Mayu drank some of the water, and then turned her head and spat the water out. "I'm surprised that's the _only_ thing I have," she muttered, closing her eyes. Sasuke frowned as he put the wipe back on Mayu's forehead. She was acting as if she knew the symptoms she was supposed to have. But that couldn't be... right? Sasuke did the same to Naruto, excluding the drinking of the water.

"Hey..." The Uchiha began. Mayu grunted, telling him that she was listening. "Why did you do that?" His question only confused the kunoichi. She turned her head. Sasuke had been on Naruto's side. His eyes were on the ground. "Why did you take that hit for me? ... That thing on your arm... it was meant to hurt me, not you. Why did you do it?" Mayu didn't speak for a moment.

"I don't know," she spoke softly. "I wasn't supposed to. This body just reacted on its own. In my mind, I was only supposed to stab that guy with the kunai, and then throw the shuriken at him when he recoiled." Green eyes stared up at the roof of the cave. "This wasn't supposed to happen. I could have died—come to think of it, I shouldn't be up right now. I think it has something to do with this body."

"What are you going on about?"

"I've noticed that Sakura's abilities and strengths are added to my own," Mayu continued. "What I mean is that I can possibly heal faster than normal. I think that's what saved my life." The girl sighed and closed her eyes. "If it had been just me, or just Sakura, we probably would have died. The pain was so—it was horrible."

The cave was enveloped in silence. After a few moments, whimpers were heard. Sasuke's head turned towards the source of the noise. The tigers still seemed a bit wary. But that was understandable, he supposed. Mayu did just try to attack them--defend against them. He held his hand out towards the family. "It's alright now. The crazy cocoon isn't going to hurt you."

"Hey! Keep talking like that and I'm going to hurt _you_!"

After a second, the tigers walked forward. Two tigers went over to Mayu's body, causing the girl to visibly tense. "They're not going to hurt you either," Sasuke stated. A nose nudged Mayu's shoulder. She gradually relaxed as the tiger kept doing that action. The other two came towards Sasuke and Naruto and lied down. "It's been about a day and a half."

"Since we encountered Oro-teme?!"

"No, since we've started, moron," Sasuke muttered. "Stop jumping to conclusions all the time."

"Bite me," was the annoyed response. "Anyway, I guess that means we have only a few days to get the other scroll and with Naruto and me out of commission for a while, our time remaining might dwindle." Sasuke frowned.

"Didn't you see?" he asked. "That guy, Orochimaru, burned our scroll. We need to get _both_ of them now." The cave grew silent again. Sasuke noticed the grin on his teammate's face. He raised an eyebrow. "Mayu… what are you hiding?" If it was impossible for a grin to grow, Mayu sure didn't care.

"Nooooothiiiiiiing…!"

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. He reached over Naruto's body and pulled at the girl's cheek. And of course Mayu squealed in response. The Uchiha finally released her cheek and frowned. "You tell me now." It wasn't a question. Mayu could tell that much. Too bad her body was too weak to reach up and nurse her poor abused cheek; it was now red.

"Remember when I asked to check the things you guys had?" Green eyes connected with onyx-colored eyes. The Uchiha nodded. He remembered quite well. Mayu didn't ask like she said she did, though. She had _ordered_ them to give her everything that they carried. The dobe of the team actually started stripping. Mayu had been quick to knock him over the head. After giving her the items, Mayu went behind a tree and didn't come back for three minutes. When asked what she did, Mayu gave this 'half-ass' answer, which answered absolutely nothing.

"Yeah, what about it?" Sasuke shifted his weight on his other knee.

"Well, I originally wanted to check the weapons and other things you guys had," Mayu replied. "While I was doing that, I couldn't help but notice that Naruto had scrolls that matched the shape and color of our Heaven scroll…" She trailed off, hoping that Sasuke would fill in the blanks. He did.

"You little sneak. You switched out the scrolls, didn't you?" The Uchiha had to smirk. He had to admit even he was fooled. The entire time he thought he had the real scroll, and then he thought Naruto had had it until Orochimaru had stolen and burned it. Mayu had probably done it because she thought that other teams would think the strongest person would have the scroll. Her plan worked. "You might be an idiot sometimes, but… that was clever."

"Well, you know what they say—if you can fool your friends, you can fool your enemies!" Mayu grinned. "Yup! I've had the scroll this whole time. And as soon as Naruto and I get better, we'll go out and get the other one!" Sasuke shook his head. His teammate was something else. "But we have to regain our strength, which means you too, Sasuke."

"I'm not an idiot."

"Could've fooled me!"

"Moron…"

"Anyway, I saw you were carrying something. It looked like fish," Mayu commented. Sasuke turned his head towards the three dropped fishes. He grunted lightly. He had almost forgotten about those. "The smell should draw some teams in. Hopefully, Naruto's up and eating by the time they show up."

"So you want them to come to us?" Sasuke stood up and walked over to the fish. He picked them up and grimaced at the dirt that had become visible to his eyes.

"Of course, we need an Earth scroll!" Mayu retorted in a 'duh' type of manner.

"And what if we're not ready?" Sasuke asked, slightly annoyed. "What then?" The kunoichi frowned. Her eyebrows knitted together. She was trying to remember something. Sasuke realized that his teammate did this whenever there was something important to remember.

"_Ah_…! You have soldier pills!" Mayu suddenly exclaimed. Sasuke lifted his head sharply. He had forgotten he brought those. He didn't really think he'd need them, but he took them anyway. "Where'd you get them, anyway?" She had a suspicious tone in her voice. "I tried to buy some, but they said I couldn't because I wasn't old enough and I had to have a parent with me! How did you get some?" Sasuke shrugged, and then explained to her that the soldier pills were given to him.

"I didn't even ask. He just gave them to me."

"Stupid lucky advanced bloodlines…!" Mayu muttered. "Anyway, screw waiting around! Give me a soldier pill right now!" Sasuke walked over to their stuff. He pulled a capsule. Inside were tiny bead-like objects. He tossed the container up and caught it with his other hand.

"That's a good idea," he commented. "But you should probably have something to eat first."

"What…?! No!" Mayu shouted. "Give me the soldier pill!"

"No. I'm going to get firewood," Sasuke remarked, and then turned his back to her.

"Sasuke, if you don't give me a friggin' soldier pill, I swear to ass I'll kick your God!"

The Uchiha turned his head, so he could stare at his teammate out of the corner of his eye. "You need to calm down. The blood is rushing to your head and causing you to become lightheaded," he stated. He turned his head and began walking out of the cave, dropping the fish on his way out. "I'll be back later." Sasuke smirked when Mayu started screeching, telling him to 'get his ass back here'. _"Yeah, she's something else, alright."_

* * *

Sasuke picked up yet another stick. Unfortunately, all the logs he found were wet from the river and he didn't want to stray too far away from the where Mayu and Naruto were. A sigh escaped his lips as he picked up yet another twig. These skinny branches—would they really be enough for a fire? "I'll get a couple more before heading back."

There was a sudden rustle in a nearby bush. Sasuke stopped moving, not sure if he had heard right. Once again, the noise reached his ears. He turned his head sharply. His dark eyes scanned the surrounding area. He spotted a shaking bush. He raised an eyebrow. _"Whoever it is, they suck at hiding…"_ His eyes narrowed as a hand reached into his holster. Several shuriken embedded into the bush. A frightened squeak was heard, and then a small animal scurried out from under the bush. He was running towards him in its panic. _"A squirrel…?"_ Sasuke's eyebrow twitched.

As the small creature ran pass, Sasuke quickly reached down and snatched it up by the tail. The squirrel, not liking this action, thrashed around. Sasuke held it at arms length in order to not get scratched. "As I thought…" he murmured, ignoring the clearly scared squeaks. _"Even without my Sharingan, I could tell… It's an explosive note."_ He peeled the note from the squirrel's body, and then tossed the animal away. He looked towards where the squirrel had come from and frowned. "Oi…! Whoever is out there, I'm not impressed!" Sasuke ripped the note in half. "What type of loser am I up against now?" he grumbled.

A laughed echoed throughout the area. Sasuke looked up. There, on top of a tree branch, were three Sound ninja. One was a pitiful excuse for a mummy, another was a girl, and the other guy looked as if he used more hair gel than Sasuke. … Not that Sasuke used a lot of hair gel… _"Wait a minute,"_ Sasuke thought. _"They're ninja from the Sound village. These must be the three that serve that guy."_

"So you were able to see it, eh?" the mummy guy chuckled. The three jumped down from the branch. Sasuke backed up as they landed on the ground. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Sasuke-kun."

"Believe me, the pleasure's all yours," Sasuke sneered. "I know you guys work for that creepy person, so why don't you tell me what the hell was that thing he put on my teammate!" The three genin from the Sound looked genuinely surprised by his words. Sasuke noticed this. "So… You did not know . I wonder why."

"I, too, wonder…" the mummy guy commented.

"Cut the crap…! If you don't want to get hurt, you'll answer my questions!"

"He's kinda cute when he barks out demands like that." The girl of the team grinned. She took a step forward as Sasuke scowled at her. "I'm going to enjoy fighting this guy." Mr. Hair gel smirked as he, too, took a step forward.

"You might enjoy fighting him, but I'll be the one to kill him, Kin."

"You really think you have a chance?" Sasuke dropped the twigs and the useless explosive note.

"My, my… What a cocky brat," Mr. Hair gel said. "I hate guys like you."

"Yes, let's kill him right away." The mummy tilted his head to the side, and then jumped towards Sasuke. His teammates followed suite. The Uchiha narrowed his eyes as they came closer. He quickly went through some hand signs.

"**Fire Style: Phoenix Fire Jutsu**!"

Several balls of fire shot from Sasuke's mouth. They headed towards the three. Their eyes widen as they tried to avoid the flames. However, one of them wasn't lucky enough to dodge. One of the fireballs hit Mr. Hair gel square in the chest, knocking him back against a tree. He cried out in pain. The smell of burnt flesh caused the other two to look back at their squirming teammate. "Zaku…!" Kin shouted. Her comrade was grabbing at his chest and it sounded as if he couldn't breathe. "You bastard!" She rounded on Sasuke, who was smirking.

"One down," he said.

Sasuke took this time to examine the three. That guy, Zaku, he was down for the count. He didn't have to worry about him getting up too soon. Sasuke's eyes scanned over the female. Although she had avoided critical damage, he saw that her hair and parts of her clothes were charred and black from the flames. He also noticed that some of the flames had licked her skin as well. Sasuke looked at the mummy. Out of all of them, he seemed to get away from the attack. _"So he's the most skillful," _he deduced. "I don't have time for weaklings like you." Sasuke smirked. His taunting had caused the kunoichi to glare. "Oh, sorry, I didn't mean to try and kill your boyfriend. He was just in my way."

"He's not my boyfriend, you ass!" Kin rushed at Sasuke, completely ignoring the protest from her mummified teammate. The Uchiha sank into a stance as the girl moved closer. This kunoichi was stupid, he realized. Though, before Sasuke could do anything, someone had attacked the girl, knocking her into her teammate. The two fell to the ground. Kin winced as she clutched her stomach. "Damn it! Who the hell are you?!" The mummy angrily pushed his teammate off of him, and then stood up. Ignoring that, Kin also stood, glaring at the newcomer.

_"What the hell?" _Sasuke stared at the green-clad ninja in surprise. Just what was he thinking? He just appeared out of nowhere. Standing in front of Sasuke in an offensive stance was Rock Lee.

"I am Konoha's Handsome Devil! My name is Rock Lee!" he introduced himself.

A sweat drop slowly slid down the back of Sasuke's head.

"_You've got to be kidding me,"_ he thought with a blank look.

The wind, dramatically, blew through Lee's shiny bowl cut. This only added to Sasuke's annoyance. "You're not apart of his team! Why are you here?!" Kin sounded pissed. And why wouldn't she be? This freak came out of nowhere and intercepted her attack on the arrogant Uchiha.

"I could not just stand by and watch as Sakura-san's teammate try to fight two enemies," Lee proclaimed. "Sakura-san would never forgive me if I let one of teammates get hurt!"

"You do realize that I'm your enemy, too, right?" Sasuke deadpanned.

"It does not matter at this moment, Uchiha-san!" Fire seemed to replace Lee's eyes. "For two against one is unfair, so I will even the score!"

"Thanks, but you're not needed," Sasuke muttered. "And quit it with the poses already." Lee instantly stopped flashing his teeth. "I don't need your help. Get out of here!"

"Negative, Uchiha-san!" Sasuke sighed heavily.

"Fine, go ahead and get hurt." The Uchiha narrowed his eyes. _"I could use this to my advantage. I can see what their abilities are before I fight them myself," _he thought.

"Enough of this! I don't care who you are!" Kin shouted. Multiple senbons flew towards Lee. With quickness, the taijutsu caught the needle like weapons. "Dosu, are you just going to stand there and do nothing?!" Kin glared at her teammate. The mummified ninja, Dosu, slowly pulled back his sleeve, revealing some type of an arm guard. Holes layered the surface of it.

He dashed towards Lee, fist ready to punch. The taijutsu user leapt back, narrowly missing the swipe of Dosu's arm. Kin grinned. She knew that one swipe was enough. Lee blinked in surprise. His vision of Dosu had suddenly become blurry and distorted. He swayed back and forth a bit, causing Sasuke to look at him in confusion. _"What just happened?"_ he thought.

"You may be fast, but our attacks are the speed of sound, thus surpassing yours," Dosu remarked. Lee dropped to his knees. The world around him seemed to spin out of control. He panted heavily. Lee became too dizzy and so he threw up the contents in his stomach. He coughed and panted as blood spilled out of his ear.

"_His left ear…"_ Sasuke stared even more confused than before. Lee grabbed his bleeding ear. _"It doesn't make sense. Why is he so damaged when he didn't get hit? Could it be some type of jutsu?"_

Dosu suddenly lifted his arm. "There's a little trick to my attack," he began. "Just dodging it won't help. It's sound. You dodged my fist, but you were attacked by the sound. Do you know what sound is? It is vibrations. Being able to hear something means your eardrum picks up on the vibrations in the air." He pointed to his ear as if the Konoha shinobi didn't know what an ear was. "A human eardrum will shatter at anything above 150 decibels. An opponent will lose their sense of balance. You won't be able to move your body for awhile. Your moves won't work on us."

"Thanks for the lesson, but your voice is annoying. Shut up," Sasuke sounded bored. Dosu glared at the Uchiha. There was haughty tone in his voice. It pissed him off.

"You arrogant little-" Kin never finished her sentence. A hand had grabbed her neck, preventing her from getting little to no oxygen. She grabbed Sasuke's wrist with one hand, still trying to breathe.

"I said shut up. I have no problem taking a girl out."

"_He's… He's fast!"_ Kin thought, grinding her teeth together in frustration.

His grip on her neck became slightly tighter. A strangled gasp came from the kunoichi's mouth. Kin's eyes suddenly rolled back and her body went limp. Sasuke snorted before dropping her to the ground. He turned his eyes the unconscious Lee, and then to Dosu. "What a disappointment. Not even my teammates are that weak. I almost feel sorry for you." Dosu stepped back as the Uchiha moved towards him. "Let's hope you're more of a challenge."

Dosu suddenly ceased his movements, causing Sasuke to end his advancement as well. He was slightly surprised that his enemy had stopped. The mummified ninja suddenly chuckled as if he knew something Sasuke didn't. "Sasuke-kun, a word of advice," he began. Sasuke could tell he was smirking under those bandages. "You shouldn't… underestimate my so called 'weak' teammates." Sasuke's dark eyes expanded in surprise as a gust of wind came at him. That gust turned into a powerful burst of air that sent him flying back. His back hit the tree. A sharp crack was hard as blood spurted from the Uchiha's mouth. He sank to the ground on his hands and knees. Blood ran down his chin. He looked up, only to see four senbons flying towards him. Sasuke moved to the side, yet two of the senbons still managed to lodge into his shoulder.

He cried out in pain as he fell to the ground again. Besides the pain from the senbons in his right shoulder, every time he moved his left arm, it hurt. _"Shit…! I think it's dislocated!"_ Sasuke glared at the three standing ninja. Somehow, Zaku was standing; his position was behind and to the right of Dosu. One of his hands was placed over his burn, while the other hand was held out. Sasuke noticed the small hole in the palm of his hand. His eyes moved over to the girl. She had a smirk on her face, standing strong where he had dropped her before. _"Damn it!"_ Kin had tricked him into thinking she was unconscious.

"Oh, how the mighty have fallen!" The girl was going to gloat. He had underestimated her. He had underestimated them all. It was time to show him who was stronger. "That's what you get for taking us lightly. Look at you, all banged up. The three of us—we're stronger than you."

"This time I really am going to kill you," Zaku said in a teasing manner. Oh, he was definitely having fun at this moment. The flames, although surprising, weren't enough to take him down. He gently rubbed his tender flesh. It did hurt like hell, though.

"_Damn it… I could activate my Sharingan, but it wouldn't give me an advantage this time."_ Sasuke tried to remove the senbons from his skin, but his jolts of pain coursed through his arm each time he tried to move it. _"If I didn't have this arm to deal with, I could still beat them."_

"Well, I do believe it's time to end this once and for all," Dosu mentioned.

"How pathetic of you, Uchiha Sasuke!" A voice was heard. The four looked up, trying to locate the speaker. It wasn't long before their eyes stopped on the owner of that voice. There, standing on a giant tree branch, was Hyuga Neji and his teammate Tenten. He had this air of superiority around him.

_"It's him again."_ Sasuke frowned. He did not want to appear weak in front of someone else, especially in front of someone like Neji. He seemed to like looking down on the weak and criticizing them. _"Great. This is just so great."_

"We originally came looking for our teammate, and yet we find you practically groveling at the enemy's feet," Neji continued. Sasuke glowered. What the hell did he know? He was _not_ groveling! "You are unfit to be a ninja. Being beaten by the likes of them."

"Why don't you come down here and say that to my face, pretty boy!" Zaku was pissed. How many more of them were going to show up? "Come down and kick our asses if you think you can!"

Neji only crossed his arms. A small smirk appeared on his face. Tenten noticed this and asked him if something was about to happen. The young genius didn't reply to his teammate's question. Instead, he stared down at the three sound ninja. "I don't think that's necessary." Goosebumps suddenly appeared on Sasuke's arms and his hair stood on end.

He slowly turned his head, as did everyone else. Gradually making their way towards the group, a lone figure with their head down became the center of attention. Sasuke turned on his Sharingan; Neji did the same with his Byakugan. _"That chakra… it's huge."_ His mouth dropped open as the figure moved closer. _"No, it can't be!"_ The person finally stopped. Flames seemed to be tattooed all over their skin, including their face. The flames turned pitched black. It looked so… ugly on her.

Several bodies visibly shook at the newcomer's arrival.

This presence… it seemed so vile, so tainted, so… inhumane. _"What happened to her?"_ Sasuke thought. _"She's not even doing anything and yet I can actually feel weird chakra. That's not how she usually-"_

"Sasuke," she spoke, unknowingly interrupting the Uchiha's thoughts. "I can see that you're hurt. Got over confident again, huh?" Her words were teasing, but Sasuke could tell there was not a trace of playful banter in her tone. "Who did this? It was all of them, wasn't it? Because there is no way you could get those injuries from just one of them, right?"

Sasuke opened his mouth, but no words reached his tongue. Instead, he winced at the surge of pain from moving. A small frown became visible as green eyes turned to the Sound ninja. Kin flinched and took several steps back. She, too, could feel the frightening chakra that surrounded the Leaf kunoichi. _"That mark…! Just as I thought… The curse seal has covered her body!"_ Dosu thought. _"That must have been what Sasuke-kun was talking about before. So it was this teammate. What the hell is he thinking?"_ Sasuke struggled to stand. And although the pain was immense, he still managed to do so.

"Mayu," he whispered. "Your body—it's different." Her green eyes, which seemed to have darkened since the last time he'd seen them, stared down at her hand.

"You don't have to worry about that." Her eyes looked back at the three Sound ninja. "I'm sure this is only temporary." Mayu turned her back to the Uchiha.

"Just who the hell are you?!" Zaku yelled, annoyed.

"It's not necessary to know that information, seeing as how you won't be living too much longer." Mayu pointed a finger. It was aimed at Dosu. "You first."

Suddenly, large fangs were driven deep into Dosu's forearm. He screamed in surprise, though most of it was from the pain. Zaku stepped away from his teammate, eyes wide in shock. "A tiger…?!" Dosu continued to scream, and yet the fangs only went deeper.

"N-No wa-way…" Kin murmured, watching her teammate try to get his arm free, but to no avail.

Mayu smiled sadistically. Green eyes watched the blood flow like a stream down Dosu's arm and onto the ground below. "How wonderful! Truly magnificent! Now… Rip. It. Off." Dosu's visible eye widen in fear.

"Wh-What…?! No! Sto-Stop it!" His pleas were ignored as the feline shook its head, trying to remove the fragile arm from his socket. "Ple-Please…! I beg of you, stop!" Tears ran down his cheek, but those were ignored as well.

Everyone else seemed too shocked to move. Even Dosu's teammates were in shock. With one last yank, the Sound ninja's arm was torn from the rest of his body. The muffled scream was enough to snap his teammates out of their stunned silence. "Dosu…!" the two yelled in unison. The tiger quickly moved away from the boy, who had fallen to his knees by now. Blood gushed from his open wound, staining the ground red.

Never before seeing that much blood, Tenten turned her head away. Neji almost did the same, but he kept his eyes trained on the scene below. The tiger had come to Mayu's side. The girl was stroking the head as if praising it for a job well done. The tiger dropped the useless, bloody arm and purred. _"Who is this person…?"_ Neji had never seen someone smile at blood being shed.

Mayu turned her eyes back to the three. "You monster! I'll kill you!" Zaku ran towards the Leaf kunoichi. The girl just grinned at his actions.

"Next," she said. Before Zaku could reach her, he was mauled over by another tiger. He was tackled to the ground. The tiger bit into his arm. Frightened eyes stared up at the snarling giant cat. "You like them? They're faster than the average tiger, but I guess that'd have to be living in _this_ forest. Survival of the fittest and whatnot!"

Tears welled up in Kin's eyes as she watched her comrade try to fight off the huge animal. His punches were having little to no effect on the creature. "Zaku…" she whispered. Her eyes took a glance at her one-armed teammate. "Dosu…" Lastly, her eyes settled on the sinister grin on the Leaf ninja's face. _"She hasn't even begun to fight, and yet I'm terrified of her!"_ Her body shook. _"Her chakra—she's too much! And if those other people get involved, all of us are dead!"_

"Last, but not least," Mayu spoke. Her creepy voice caused the Sound kunoichi to gasp. "It's your turn, girl." She pointed a finger again. "Are you ready to become lunch?"

"Mayu, stop!" That frantic voice made Mayu's posture falter. She slowly turned to face her teammate. "This isn't you! This isn't how it's supposed to be… You can't do this! Tell it to stop!"

Green and onyx eyes seemed to lock onto each other. They stayed that way for a few moments. The curse seal suddenly turned back into flame colors and retracted to the mark on her arm. The mark glowed red before it went black. "Stop…" Mayu murmured. The giant cat hopped off of Zaku and moved to the girl's side. All the strength left her body, causing her to fall down. Sasuke dropped to his knees as Mayu panted heavily. "Oh, God…!" She stared wide-eyed at the ground; tears stung her eyes.

"Mayu…"

"You are stronger than we are," Kin's voice caused the two Leaf ninja to look towards her. She had a scroll in her hand. She tossed it over to them. Sasuke recognized it as the Earth scroll. His dark eyes grew wide. "Please accept this, and in exchange… you let us go. I take my teammates and go. Please… just let us go."

"Kin, what are you-"

"Shut up, Zaku!" the girl snapped at her teammate. "And bring your butt over here! We're leaving now!"

The spiky-haired male grumbled, and then stood. He moved over to his teammates, leaving a trail of blood from his arm. Kin picked up Dosu, and then jumped away. "This isn't over!" Zaku muttered before he jumped away.

Mayu ignored the Sound's departure and focused on the ground. She was shaking violently by now. "I… I was going to… I was going to let-" Even her voice trembled. Green eyes stared hard at the mark on her arm. "-This thing—it's horrible!" Sasuke watched her shake. He felt as if he couldn't do a thing to comfort her. Mayu might've been a ninja, a fighter, but she was no killer. Sasuke was certain that she would never take pleasure in ending someone's life, and yet… she smiled when that guy's arm was ripped off.

_"She's scared,"_ Sasuke thought. _"How could I let this happen to her…? She shouldn't have taken that bite for me!" _The Uchiha turned his head away in shame. Once again, he had failed to protect those he cared about. He reached out and grabbed the scroll with his good arm. Now the team had both scrolls and they could head to the tower… once they were well rested, of course. After everything that had happened, they were physically and mentally not prepared. _"What am I going to do about this shoulder?"_

Tenten jumped on the ground. She made sure to stay away from the two tigers that growled at her. She went over to her teammate. "Wake up, Lee!" She shook her teammate, causing Lee's head to go to and fro. Tenten finally dropped her comrade to the ground. Lee looked up at her, confused at seeing her face.

"Tenten…?" he murmured, still unsure. The kunoichi dropped down to his level. "Why are you here?"

"We came to help you," she answered.

"Huh…? Where did the Sound ninja go?" Lee looked around, trying to locate the enemy.

"That girl, Sakura—she drove them away." Tenten's brown eyes traveled over to Sasuke and his teammate. "How she did it was scary, but she ended up driving them away all the same." The kunoichi turned her eyes back to Lee. "We should get out of here." Lee began to protest, but Tenten was not having that. "Now, Lee!" Lee quickly saluted his female companion, and then bounded off. Tenten shook her head before following after him. She glanced back at the two again. _"That feeling… That terrifying feeling. I can't believe Lee likes a girl like that… She seems dangerous."_

Mayu had finally snapped out of it and now her eyes were on her teammate. "Sasuke…" She tried to get his attention. The boy didn't look up from the ground. "Sasuke, we need to go back to the cave. And… your injuries—everything I need to fix them is at the cave. I think I can even fix your shoulder."

"How would you know how to do that?" Sasuke still hadn't lifted his head.

"I saw it on T.V., of course," Mayu responded. The Uchiha gave her a blank look. It was her tear-stained face that caused him to look away again.

"I know I'm not going to like this…" he mumbled.

"Probably not."

* * *

Sasuke had his back against the wall. Mayu had already taken care of the senbons wounds. Now, all that was left was the shoulder. His teammate still hadn't told him how she was going to do it. He stared at her back. Mayu was busy cooking the fish at the moment. Naruto was—Sasuke turned his eyes to his blond teammate. A flat expression appeared on his face. Naruto was still staring at him with a sour look. "What the hell are you looking at, dope?!"

Uzumaki Naruto had been staring since he woke up. Well, at first, he screamed and yelled something about Orochimaru, and then he screamed and pointed at the tigers. Mayu calmly explained to the blond that everything was fine. Sasuke had to hit him over the head a couple time to get him to relax. After that ordeal, Naruto just stared.

"Something's different," Naruto muttered.

"Oh, you mean other than my dislocated shoulder?" Sasuke asked sarcastically.

"Hahaha, very funny teme…!"

"Naruto, Sasuke, I think they're ready!" Mayu announced, causing both heads to turn. The kunoichi handed her teammates one fish each; the cooked fishes were on sturdy little sticks. "Dig in…!"

"Itadakimasu…!" Naruto happily complied.

Sasuke waited a few seconds before doing the same. Mayu watched her teammates eating, and then her eyes settled on the fish in her hand. "Itadakimasu…" she murmured before nibbling on her portion of the meal. Team 7 ate their food in silence, each one having their own thoughts about their current situation.

The silence was broken by Naruto's loud sigh of satisfaction. "Man, that hit the spot!" he exclaimed. "I wish it was ramen, though…" Sasuke threw down the stick, finished with his fish.

"Gochisousama…" he said, frowning.

"Ne, ne, Sakura-chan, Sasuke…!" The loud blond got their attention. "So what happened while I was sleep?"

Sasuke took a glance at his female teammate. She had her head tilted towards the ground, but her frown was still visible to his eyes. Not to mention the shaking of her body. Sasuke took the initiative and began telling Naruto what happened, leaving out bits and pieces of the story. "In the end, we received their Earth scroll." The Uchiha finished.

"So you got hurt taking care of those Sound ninja?" Naruto muttered.

"Uh… yeah…" Sasuke lied. Of course he didn't tell the truth about what happened. He also did not tell Naruto about the mark on Mayu's arm, which had been hidden by bandages.

"Sooooo…! Now all we have to do is build up our strength, and then replace the Heaven scroll that guy took from me!"

"Not exactly, Naruto." Mayu finally spoke up. She crawled over to her things. After rummaging through, she eventually pulled out a scroll. "Here's the Heaven scroll." Naruto sputtered in surprise, but Mayu got the gist of what he was trying to ask. "I switched an empty and the real scroll before we encountered anyone. That what I did when I asked to see your stuff, remember?" The blond looked confused, and then a light bulb seemed to appear over his head.

"_Ah_…! Sneaky, sneaky, Sakura-chan!" Naruto grinned. Mayu gave a wry smile. "But what about Sasuke's arm? There's still a chance that we'll run into enemies!" The kunoichi nodded, dropped her stick, and then crawled over to Sasuke.

"I'll take care of that now," she said, placing one hand on Sasuke's shoulder, while she placed the other hand on his forearm. The Uchiha winced at her touch. "It's not dislocated, just merely out of place." Sasuke gave her a flat expression.

"Isn't that the same thing?"

Mayu returned the flat look.

"You know something… I'm not too sure."

"You moron, just get on with it!"

"Hey, Sasuke…" Mayu started. Her eyes were on his arm. "Before I go through with this, I have a question for you."

"What is it?"

_CRACK_

"_**AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH**_!!" Sasuke let out a shriek of massive pain. "WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT?!" The Uchiha grunted as he fell forward, grasping his shoulder.

"Well, I was _hoping_ to distract you from the pain… It didn't work out the way if should have," Mayu responded, sighing. "I thought by not expecting it, you'd be more surprised than in pain."

"I'm… going… to… murder… you…" Sasuke panted. His breaths made some dirt fly up. Luckily, none of it went into his mouth. Mayu gently pulled Sasuke back up. She removed his shirt—Sasuke protested, but was much too tired to push her away—then began wrapping his forearm and shoulder.

"Don't be such a baby, bird brain!" she scolded. "After I'm finished with this, we need to find somewhere else to go. Combined with the smell of cooking fish, Sasuke's scream probably alerted other teams to our location."

"Yeah, Sasuke, you big loud mouth!" Naruto chastised.

"You have no room to talk, dope!" Mayu tightened the bandage, causing Sasuke to wince and glare. She tied it into a knot. "You didn't have to tie it that tight!"

"Yes, I did. If I didn't, you'd be hurting again in a few hours." Mayu stood up. "I think you can move it now and only have slight pain." Her gaze was on both of her teammates. "Listen up!" She put her hands on her hips. "After we leave here, we'll spend at least a day and a half hiding and recovering. Even if we do come across another team, we will not engage in combat. It would be too dangerous for us. After we're all healed up, we'll head for the tower. Sasuke, did you memorize that diagram Anko-sensei showed us?"

Sasuke nodded in confirmation. He picked up his discarded stick and began drawing in the dirt. After he was finished, he pointed to a location on the map. "Judging from the nearby river, I'd say we're right here."

"How far will it take to get to the tour from here?" Naruto asked.

"If we don't encounter enemies, I'd say just a few hours, maybe less than that."

"Adding the days of recuperation, we should reach the tower with a day to spare," Mayu commented. She crossed her arms. "But I think we can be faster."

"Huh…? What do you mean, Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked. "We can only travel so fast."

"Yeah, and not to mention our calculations might be a little off. Even with this plan, we might not make it to the tower."

"I'm just saying we can speed things up a bit. Not our recovery, but the pace—we can speed that up."

"How are we supposed to do that?"

"Well, Naruto, have you ever ridden a tiger?"

"Eh?"

"_Hell_ no!"

* * *

Thank you all so much for reviewing! All nine reviews brought tears of joys to my eyes!

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	5. Because of You

It had been one day and a half since the encounter with the Sound ninja. During this time period, Team 7 had mainly been in hiding. Resting by day and traveling by night was their routine. As it turns out, their calculations had been wrong and the team had gotten lost several times. Fortunately, they hadn't run into any other enemies during their recuperation. Day four of the second part of the chuunin exam was about to begin.

The head tiger came sliding to a stop. The two tigers behind it also stopped. The surrounding area was quiet. The head tiger looked left to right. Everything was dark, but with cat eyes, night vision wasn't a problem. Judging from the deep blue sky, the sun would rise in about an hour. The kunoichi slid off of the beast's body and looked towards her teammates. "We'll rest for ten minutes, and then head straight for the tower. No more breaks." The two shinobi nodded, and then they, too, slid off their respective tigers.

Mayu stroked the tiger's head, causing the giant feline to purr. The other two came over, nudging at the kunoichi. They obviously wanted the same treatment. Naruto watched all this in astonishment. Although they had been traveling with the tigers, he was still confused as to why the fierce tigers were acting like docile kittens in the presence of his teammate. "Ne, Sakura-chan..." Mayu looked over to her blond teammate at the sound of his voice. Sasuke kept quiet as he sat down with his back against a tree.

"Something wrong, Naruto?" Mayu asked.

"No, no... It's just... how are you controlling those tigers?" Naruto sat down with his legs folded; he frowned. "It doesn't seem right, that's all." Mayu was quiet for a few moments.

"I don't know... It's always been like this," she murmured. "Never to this extent, but... cats have always liked me as much as I've liked them. But those were just house cats. I didn't think it'd be the same with wild cats like these."

"So you don't know how you're controlling them?" Sasuke spoke as he lifted his head.

"I'm not controlling them, bird brain. Their will is their own." Mayu looked up. "I guess they decided to help us. I wonder if they can understand. They are intelligent creatures. I wouldn't be surprised if they knew what we were saying." Sasuke snorted. "Anyway, I'll going to go up and see if I can spot the tower from our position." Naruto nodded his head. "Sasuke, you can take the bandage from your shoulder. After a while, you should be able to move it like usual."

"Right."

"Be back in a sec...!" The kunoichi jumped up, leaving her two teammates behind with three tigers. Naruto gulped as one of the tigers licked his lips. The tiger was staring right at him! The blond unconsciously moved closer to the Uchiha. Sasuke, unlike Naruto, didn't seem to care about the presence of the giant felines. He was even taking off his shirt, showing his flesh to the carnivorous creatures! ... Not much meat to begin with, but it was the thought that counted!

"Oi...! Sasuke!" Naruto muttered. The Uchiha took out a kunai before turning his head to the blond. "This has been on my mind for awhile now..."

"What are you talking about?" Sasuke began to cut through the bandage on his shoulder. Mayu had tied it so tight that this was the only way to get it off. He grumbled when he accidently pierced his skin. Luckily, there wasn't blood.

"It's Sakura-chan... She's different from before," Naruto stated.

"_Itai_...!" Sasuke had cut himself again. This time, there was blood. Luckily, only a thin line… The Uchiha turned to Naruto. "What did you say?" He was surprised that the blond picked up on it.

"I'm sure you've noticed it, too. Sakura-chan has been different since we became ninja." Naruto looked as if he was thinking back. "She doesn't hit me as much as she used to back when we were in the Academy; she fights with you and calls you names. I mean, I knew that she liked you a lot back then... And not that Sakura-chan wasn't already strong-" Sasuke snorted. "-But she seemed to get stronger overnight or something. I think Sakura-chan actually views the two of us as her _equals_! She's never looked at me with... respect before she became a ninja."

"Maybe she just got her priorities straight," Sasuke suggested. "And anyway, do you have a problem with the way she acts now?" He finally got the bandages off; he was about to drop it, but thought better. Enemies could track them with it, after all. Naruto shook his head rapidly. "Then you shouldn't question her behavior."

"Ne, Sasuke... What do you think about Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked. For a moment, the Uchiha didn't answer. Naruto almost thought he didn't hear his question. He had been whispering, after all.

"She's much more tolerable now," Sasuke answered.

"Tolerable...?"

"That's right."

Naruto sighed heavily. _"That didn't answer anything,"_ he thought, looking away from the Uchiha. "Well, I think Sakura-chan's awesome!" He showed his teeth in a foxy grin. "She was always smart... but now... I think she's my equal, too."

"So what...? You like her more now?" Sasuke asked. The blond did not answer, causing the Uchiha to raise an eyebrow. "You do know that that won't do, right? Your feelings for her might get in the way." For some reason, it annoyed Sasuke that Naruto still liked _Sakura_.

Naruto opened his mouth as if he were about to say or yell something. His words died before they could be voiced, however, because his teammate dropped down at that exact moment. "The tower is not far from here, lucky us, huh?" The kunoichi pointed northwest. "In that direction." She turned to her teammates. "What's the matter?"

"Nothing, nothing!" Naruto exclaimed, turning his head; Sasuke did the same.

Mayu stared at the two for a full minute. "Okay..." She looked away. "About another five minutes, you guys." Grunts of confirmation reached her ears. "And put your shirt on, bird brain."

"What if I don't want to?" Sasuke smirked; he didn't look up.

"If you don't, I'll make Naruto kiss you, thus fulfilling the twisted dreams of millions of yaoi fans." Mayu's threat was met with blank expression. The kunoichi smiled lightly, and then went over to her teammates. She sat in front of them. "Naruto, Sasuke...!" She snapped them out of it.

"Okay, you have a very weird mind," Sasuke muttered, glaring. Mayu just laughed and waved off his remark.

"Naruto, Sasuke...!" She repeated. "We're all friends, right?" The two boys appeared to be dumbfounded. "Right?!"

"Yes, yes!" Naruto's hands came up just in case.

"Whatever..." The Uchiha frowned.

Even though the two gave those types of answers, they each knew that Team 7 was friends. It was just never voiced before. "In that case, no matter what happens next, we'll always be friends, okay?" Mayu grinned. She held her hand out. "Whether we pass this or not, friends for life?" Naruto grinned as well.

"Hell yeah!" He placed his hand over Mayu's. The two stared at the Uchiha expectedly. He gave an exasperated sigh.

"Do I have to do this?" Rapidly nodding heads were his answer. He sighed again before placing his hand over Naruto's. "Fine..."

"Yosh...!" Mayu cheered, springing her hand up, causing Naruto and Sasuke's to do the same. "Okay! Let's go get 'em!" She stood up and dusted her clothes off. Naruto jumped up, clearly excited.

_"More than equals... We're all friends."_ Naruto couldn't help but to smile as he thought this.

Sasuke stood up and put on his shirt. _"And she calls me the weird one..."_ he thought. A small smirk appeared on his features. His dark eyes watched the girl climb on the back of a tiger. Mayu was none the wiser of the Uchiha's gaze, but Naruto sure was. _"She's tolerable, all right... Not to mention she has the potential to become a great leader."_ Sasuke shook his head, and then moved to get on his own tiger. _"Though, I pity the fools who will have to listen to her demands."_

Naruto hopped onto his tiger and frowned. His blue eyes looked back and forth between Sasuke and _Sakura_. _"I wonder why Sasuke keeps looking at Sakura-chan with those eyes..."_ The blond had never seen his fellow shinobi with those types of eyes. It wasn't anger, hatred, fear, sadness, or respect. It was something Naruto had yet to see in anyone's eyes. He continued to ponder Sasuke's weird looks until Mayu spoke.

"Like I said before, we'll head straight for the tower, no stopping." She turned her head to her teammates. "Stay close, stay quiet, and stay alert. The sun will be up less than forty-five minutes, I'm guessing. When that happens, spread out, but not too far."

"So when do we reach the tower, Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked. Mayu opened her mouth to respond, but Sasuke beat her to the punch.

"Fifteen minutes after the sun rises, I think," he said; Mayu glowered at him.

"I wish I had a rock right now."

"Why?"

"So I can knock the taste outta Sasuke's mouth!"

The Uchiha glared.

"Don't interrupt me then." Mayu shrugged. "Let's move!"

And with that, the three tigers with genin saddled on their backs, raced forward.

* * *

The three members of Team 7 panted heavily. They had fallen from the backs of the tigers and were now on the floor on their hands and knees. They had reached the tower, but had yet to go beyond the red painted doors. The sun was shining. The heat from its rays did little to make the team feel any better. One of the tigers whimpered behind them.

"Kuso...! This body is totally drained!" Mayu murmured, glaring at the cemented ground. "Stupid... freaks... damn... them...!"

"Did... you really... have to... tie them up... like... that... in the... nude?" Sasuke panted heavily.

"And write... 'We suck more than a whore with no gag reflex' on their bodies...? In... permanent mark—marker?" Naruto asked. The blond finally collapsed.

"They... shouldn't have... hurt Tony..." The girl crumbled, but still found the strength to turn on her back.

"The tiger?"

"Yup."

Sasuke struggled to stand. The team's last fight before they reached the tower took a lot out of them. Their run-in with the strange Rain ninja almost completely wasted their chakra. And if it weren't for the tigers, the three wouldn't have gone on. Sasuke pulled the capsule of soldier pills from his pocket. He quickly opened and took one. Popping the bead-like item, he felt his chakra reserves swell. His body stopped shaking. He almost instantly felt better.

Sasuke waited a few more moments before giving his teammates one each. Mayu sat up with a burst of newfound energy. "Whoa...! Now that packs a punch!"

"Yeah! We need some more of those things for the tougher missions we're going to get when we all become chuunin!" Naruto agreed.

"Glad to see you're so confident, Naruto!" Mayu grinned. "Let's go inside now!"

Sasuke nodded, and then proceeded to open the doors. He went inside, along with Naruto. Mayu turned to face the three tigers that had helped them with this long journey. "Now you stay off that front paw until it's healed up, Tony!" She patted the said tiger on the head. The large cat purred in response. "Thank you for assisting us. Please thank your leader as well when you return to him." Three scratchy tongues licked Mayu's face. The kunoichi giggled before stroking their heads fondly. "Go on, now! You big kitties, I'll see you around!"

"Sakura-chan...!" Naruto's voice called.

"Hey...! Get your ass in here!" Sasuke's voice called after. Mayu rolled her eyes. Green eyes watched the three tigers head back into the forest. With a smile, she turned and walked inside, closing the doors behind her.

The room was totally deserted. It looked almost as old as the Fifth Hokage. A pair of overhead balconies to the right and left caught Mayu's eye. She also noticed a large framed banner with a quote on it. As the three moved to the center of the room, Sasuke took the liberty of reading the quote out loud.

_If you do not posses Heaven, gain knowledge and be prepared. If you do not possess Earth, run through the fields and seek strength. If you possess both Heaven and Earth scrolls, dangerous paths turn into safe ones. This is the secret of... It shall lead you on your way._

"What the heck does that supposed to mean?" Naruto murmured, confused. Mayu shrugged. Sasuke crossed his arms. He stared at the ground, eyebrows knitted together. His head suddenly snapped up as if he had come to an answer.

"The scrolls," he told his teammates. They looked at him with blank expressions. He sighed. "It's telling us to open the scrolls. Now that we have both of the scrolls and have reached the tower, it's now safe to open them." They responded with enlightened 'ahhh's. Sasuke shook his head, and then pulled the Earth scroll from his pouch. "Sakura."

The kunoichi nodded, and then pulled out the Heaven scroll. "A secret answer must be in these." She pulled the scroll open; Sasuke did the same with the Earth scroll. Naruto's blue eyes scanned over both scrolls. He gained nothing from it.

"What's this?" he questioned.

"Hito? Jin?"

Sasuke's eyes widen just as the paper seemed to bulge and release smoke. "This is a summoning inscription!" The Uchiha had recognized. "Throw them over there!" Without a second thought, the two ninja did as they were told. That area of the room was hidden by the smoke from the scrolls.

"I swear if this is a giant snake, I'm going to faint!" Mayu muttered. Both Sasuke and Naruto shuddered, remembering that part of the five-day exam.

The smoke finally vanished. Instead of a giant snake, there, in front of the team, was a familiar figure. "Eh...?!" Naruto was stunned. He pointed a finger at the older male, which caused him to smirk.

"It's been a long time, right, Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura?"

"Iruka-sensei...! What the heck is going on?!" Naruto shouted, his finger still pointed. The scarred chuunin chuckled lightly.

"Looks like the three of you went through a lot of trouble."

"That's nothing to smile about..." Mayu murmured with a flat look.

"What? Why? Why did you appear through a summoning technique?" Naruto asked.

"At the end of the second exam, it's set up so that we chuunin meet up with the team who has taken the test. I was given the duty-" Mayu snickered. "-to pass you three a message by chance."

"He said _duty…!_"

Sasuke whacked her over the head and rolled his eyes when she started crying. It was all a ruse, of course. Iruka coughed lightly. "Congratulations on passing the Second phase of the chuunin exam. I would treat you all to ramen at Ichiraku, but..." The chuunin didn't get to finish because Naruto, happy with the promise of ramen, whooped in glee.

"Yeah!!" The genin latched himself onto the man. "Ramen! Ramen! I did well! I'm the best!! I want to eat ramen!" Iruka stumbled back at the added weight of his former student. Sasuke and Mayu stared in disbelief.

"I know he just had a soldier pill, but this is ridiculous," Sasuke muttered, crossing his arms.

"Sounds to me like you're jealous, Sasuke."

The Uchiha glared.

Meanwhile, the chuunin had finally removed Naruto from his person. He sighed. "Geez, you're still restless like before." Iruka smiled, wiping the liquid from his face. He had worked up a sweat trying to pry the blond off him. "Though I will say that I'm quite surprised you three made it here in four days."

"Hey, now...! You underestimate our abilities, Iruka-sensei?" Mayu asked. "We're stronger than we look, ya know. After all, our team's the best! Am I right?"

"Yeah, yeah!" Naruto enthusiastically replied.

"Hn..."

"That's emo language for 'Hell yeah! We number one! We run this!' I've gotten pretty good at deciphering it, Iruka-sensei!" Mayu whispered to the man. Too bad she didn't do a good job whispering.

The chuunin's smile grew bigger as Sasuke nailed her on the head again. "Well, rest up, you three. One more day and the results will be in." He turned his back to them. _"I guess... I guess I didn't have to worry about them after all. They've all grown since the last time I've seen them, which was only a few weeks ago. Even Sakura..." _The man couldn't help but notice the bandage around the girl's arm. Iruka began to walk away.

"Oi...! What do we do for food?! I'm hungry!" Mayu called. Iruka turned back around.

"Of course. I will show you where you will be staying until the second exam is over." He frowned. Sakura sure was acting differently from before... "Please follow me."

* * *

"I can't believe Iruka-sensei gave us more soldier pills instead of food." Naruto sighed heavily. His back hit the soft. The team was given a room to rest in. They only managed to get a glimpse of which teams made it, and that's only because some of their doors were opened. They didn't see any of the Rookie Nine, though. Unfortunately, the room they were given only had one large bed and no pillows.

"You're telling me." The kunoichi plopped down next to the blood; her head rested on his stomach. She sighed wearily. "After this, I hope we actually get to eat. Next time, we're bringing our own food!" Sasuke also lied on the bed; his head rested on Mayu's stomach.

"Stop complaining already." He closed his eyes. "Let's just be grateful that we get to rest easy for a while."

"Hai, hai…" Mayu breathed deeply, closing her eyes. Pretty soon, the three were sound asleep. Naruto was snoring loudly. Mayu was mumbling in her sleep. And Sasuke made faces. If anyone were to come along, they would comment about their weird sleeping habits, not to mention their positions.

X amount of hours later, a knock on the door was heard. It wasn't answered, so the person took the liberty of coming right on in. Hatake Kakashi slowly opened the door and stepped inside. He was surprised to see his students on the large bed, clinging to each other. _Sakura_ was in the middle of the two boys. The two had one arm wrapped around her abdomen. The other hands were grasped in the girl's hands. The three seemed to sleep peacefully.

Kakashi's visible eyes closed into a curve. He smiled lightly under his mask. He went over to a chair and sat. He eyed the nearby sink. _"I'll let them sleep for a few more minutes," _he thought. He turned his attention back to his team. He crossed his arms. They, Team 7, had gone through a lot to get here. That, he could tell from their bruised and dirty bodies.

The jounin stared their entangled legs and wondered when the three had gotten so close, so close that they didn't mind that they were touching one another willingly. Out of the three, Sasuke's actions seemed most out of character. Kakashi narrowed his visible eye. "Perhaps now… he feels that he doesn't have distance himself from others. Naruto and Sakura are great influences on him." His eye flickered over to the female of the team.

He was not expecting this type of girl on his squad, he admitted. Girls her age were usually only interested in make-up, boys, and staying clean. When Kakashi first saw the young girl, he ha judged her right off the bat, before she had even spoken a word. He assumed that she was a normal girl. He had looked at her body. No, not like a pedophile… He had noticed that there was little to no muscle on the girl's arms or legs. Because of this observation, he didn't think twice of her abilities.

Kakashi looked up at the ceiling and sighed. He had assumed she had very little stamina, strength, and the only thing that she had going for her was her intelligence, which was why she was placed on a team with strong genin in the first place. But from the first time she told him about herself, he should have realized that it would be a mistake to underestimate her… and yet he did. Kakashi rubbed his chin in memory of that kick she gave him. He chuckled lightly. "Haruno Sakura… She has the mind of a child, but a heart of a warrior."

His eyes moved over to the blond. He stared at the snoring genin. Kakashi smiled. _"No words really need to be said about Naruto."_ He chuckled again. _"Sasuke, his skills are above average… Naruto, his fierce determination inspires the rest of the team, unintentional or not… And Sakura-" _An image of the grinning girl appeared in his mind. _"-She will make a fine kunoichi."_

With a sigh, the jounin stood up and went over to the sink. He turned the cold water on and ran his two pinkies under the flow. After waiting a few moments, he turned the water off. Smiling, Kakashi walked over to the bed. He bent at an angle, and then placed his two pinkies in each boy's ear. The two shook violently and screamed. The screams caused the team member in the middle to wake up screaming as well. "What?! What?! What?! What?!" She looked around as if looking for an enemy. Naruto and Sasuke snatched their hands from Mayu's grasp and rubbed furiously at their violated ears.

Laughter broke through the loud noises the three were making. The genin of Team 7 stopped what they were doing and looked at their sensei. Three pairs of eyes blinked in confusion. Why was their jounin teacher here, practically laughing his ass off? Light bulbs suddenly turned on above their heads, Mayu being the last to realize what had happened. "KAKASHI-SENSEI…! WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO THAT FOR?!" Naruto shouted, pointing a finger. Sasuke let out a snarl. What the hell was wrong with their sensei's head?!

"Gomen, gomen… That was the only way I knew how to wake you up at the same time." Kakashi waved his hand as if he were a kitten, batting the air.

"I'LL GIVE YOU SOMETHING TO WAKE UP TO!" Naruto lunged—well, tried to lunge at the jounin. He looked back to see that his other arm was still wrapped around Mayu's torso. Sasuke also realized this. Mayu looked down at Sakura's body. She blinked.

"_Two arms that belong to my teammates are wrapped around me." _She blinked again.

…

…

"_AHHHH_! THE HELL IS GOING ON?!"

Both males went flying from the bed and onto their bottoms. That's when the three genin started yelling, shouting, and screaming at each other, blaming each other for their predicament. _"So much chaos… I wonder how it happened." _Kakashi shrugged, and then cleared his throat to get their attention. "In five minutes, you three are scheduled to meet in that room Iruka showed you earlier." He made some hand signs. "Don't be late." He disappeared in a puff of smoke.

The room grew quiet. Mayu began rubbing her bandaged arm. "Sorry about that, you guys." She finally spoke up. "You know how I get when I jump to conclusion."

"Yeah, we do." They both responded in unison, causing the girl to frown. They didn't have to say it that quickly.

"Um… yeah, sorry about hitting you," Mayu murmured.

Sasuke realized that his teammate had yet to stop rubbing her arm. He stood up. "Is it bothering you?" Mayu instantly stopped her movements. She laughed nervously, waving off his concern.

"Nah, nah…! It's fine!" Sasuke didn't look convinced. "Anyway, let's head to that place now." Mayu stretched, and then got up from the bed. She neglected to see her teammates' stares as she put on her sandals. Naruto, too, had noticed her friction.

"Ne, Sakura-chan… is there something wrong with your arm?" he asked. He pointed at the wrapped up arm. "You keep messing with it like it's irritating you."

"Don't worry about it, Naruto. It's just a scratch… I'll—I'll put something on it afterwards." Mayu went over to the door. "Put your shoes on and come on, already!" With that order, the kunoichi trotted out of the room. Naruto's blue eyes went from the door to his teammate.

"Sasuke…" he began.

"I'll tell you about it at a later time. Right now, we've got less than three minutes. Hurry and get ready." Naruto nodded his head.

* * *

Mayu yawned loudly as she listened to the Hokage go on and on about the true purpose of the exam. Because of her obviously rude action, she received several glares, one being from her sensei. In all honesty, the kunoichi didn't care for the glares. _"They shouldn't talk to tired genin if they actually want them to listen."_ Green eyes scanned those around her.

Naruto stood in front of her; Sasuke was behind her. The rookie nine, Lee's team, and the team from the Sand had made it, plus a couple other teams, including the three from the Sound. Mayu frowned as she eyed the one-arm mummified shinobi. She felt bad, even though it wasn't her that did it. She still had ordered it of those tigers. Mayu looked down at the floor. Dosu had begged her to stop; he had even cried. And yet… _"And yet I still let it happen."_ The shinobi from the Sound village still had both of his sleeves, but it was still noticeable that one of his arms was gone. Mayu briefly wondered how the guy was going to fight.

Out of the seventy-eight participants, only twenty-one had made it this far. They, including several jounin, the Hokage, and Iruka, were all in a large room. A giant statue of the ram sign towered over all. Mayu moved eyes over the sensei of the teams. Green eyes stopped on the one from the Sound village. _"He looks eerily familiar…"_ Mayu produced a flat look. The known stranger seemed to smirk… at her! The girl quickly averted her gaze and grabbed her arm. It had suddenly starting hurting again.

A man, out of nowhere, appeared before the genin. He was bowing down to the Hokage. His sudden appearance caused Mayu to start paying attention again. "I apologize, Hokage-sama…" the man began. "But as referee, please allow me to take it from here." The elder man was silent for a few moments.

"By all means…" The old man nodded his head.

The man rose from his crouched position, and then turned to the seven teams. "Hello, my name is Hayate." Mayu grimaced. He looked even sicker than she remembered. The man coughed. "Before the third test, there's… something I'd like you to do…" He coughed again, this time more violently. A sweat drop slid down a few genin heads. Hayate sighed wearily before continuing. "Um… It's a preliminary for the third test to decide who gets to participate in the main event."

"Preliminary…?! What do you mean?!" Shikamaru actually sounded upset, but then again, of course he would. This exam was taking away precious cloud-watching time, not to mention it was so damn troublesome for his tastes.

"To put it bluntly-" he coughed again. "-there's too many of you. The first and second exams have been too easy this year. According to the rules, we must have a preliminary-" another cough. "-to reduce the people remaining. As Hokage-sama said before, there are very important clients attending the main event. The fights could take too long for their liking." Awkward pause. "So… yeah… anyone who is not feeling up to the challenge, please come forward since we're having the preliminary right now."

"What?! Right now?!" It was actually Kiba who shouted it. Eyelids lowered over green eyes.

"_Kabuto quits, doesn't he…?"_ Mayu thought, glancing at the purple-clad ninja. _"Of course, he's no longer need to be in this exam."_ As if on cue, the glasses-wearing spy raised his hand and asked if he could quit. "Only someone with an ulterior motive would come this far just to quit," Mayu murmured loud enough so that her teammates could here. "Like I said before, don't trust not a word he says." Naruto glanced back at his female teammate. She was now glaring at the departing male. The blond turned his head back. He would have to ask later on. Come to think of it, _Sakura_ seemed to also do that. Not just with Kabuto… There was also Lee, and that Gaara kid, Naruto realized. She had practically glomped Lee and totally ignored everyone when that Sand ninja was around. Naruto knew his teammate jumped to conclusions a lot, but this was just ridiculous. He'd definitely have to ask Sasuke about it later. For some reason, he knew that the Uchiha knew something about their female companion.

Hayate coughed. "Is there anyone else that wants to leave?" No one responded. "This is your last chan-" A cry of pain interrupted him.

"_Ugh_…!" Mayu grunted as she squeezed her bandaged arm. She fell to her knees. "Shit…"

"Sakura-chan! What's wrong?!" Naruto knelt down to her level.

"Mayu… it's that mark, isn't it?" Sasuke whispered. He had also dropped down to her level.

"I'm—_argh_—I'm fine!" The girl clutched her arm as if it were a lifeline. Sasuke frowned, watching his teammate sweat. By now, almost everyone (who cared, at least) had their eyes on them.

"You… you should quit." Mayu's head snapped up at Sasuke's request. "I mean it. You should quit. This thing on your arm is causing you too much pain. In the middle of a battle, you could get even more hurt."

"Sasuke, I won't let myself quit! How dare you even suggest that I should! In order for me to get stronger, I must fight people with a wide range of abilities. And… you already know that I have to get stronger." Sasuke's frown turned into a glare. "You should understand how I feel… I'm not quitting over this and you can protest all you want to." The kunoichi stood up, still clutching her arm. "I also…want to fight you. How you forgotten that?"

Sasuke and Naruto slowly stood as well. "What's going on? Are you going to leave?" Hayate directed his question over to Team 7.

"Oh, nothing…!" Sakura's voice squeaked. "Just minor cramps!" She laughed nervously. Dark eyes noticed the way her body trembled.

Hayate coughed.

"_When did young girls get so cheeky?"_ he thought. "Very well, we will now move on. This preliminary will consist of one-on-one fights. As if this were real confrontations, you will fight like your life is on the line. Since we now have twenty people left, there will be ten matches. The winners of those matches will advance to the third test." More coughing came from the man. "There's basically no rules for this. The fight will continue until one gets killed or knocked out. If you don't want to get killed, admit your defeat. If some of you are too stubborn to admit that, I will jump in and stop things. We really don't want—_cough_, _cough_, _cough_—more dead bodies." He stared at the faces of the remaining twenty. "The two that will fight each other will be decided by-" A cover was lifted up, revealing a giant flat screen. "-this electric scoreboard. Yes, it's sudden, but the first match up will be announced right now."

Random names flashed across the giant screen. Everyone stared, but it was Mayu who stared at it with a flat expression. _"Just… When in the heck are we?" _she thought. _"Kishimoto-sama really didn't make that clear…"_ The names had stopped flashing. The first match up of the preliminary rounds was exposed.

**Hyuga Hinata**

**VS.**

**Haruno Sakura**

**Inner Mayu: WHAT THE FU-**

"No… way…" Mayu mumbled with wide eyes.

* * *

Thanks to everyone who review last time! It's a joy reading what you think.

Next time:_ Battle Royale!_

Review?


	6. Battle Royale

The room was silent. No one made a sound. A lip twitched as green eyes read over the names again, hoping that it was just a mistake and the computer was just being a silly, silly machine again. But there was no mistake. Her eyes were seeing just fine, much to the girl's displeasure. _"I have to fight... Hinata-chan for reals..."_ Mayu thought, frowning. But why...? That's definitely not what happened in the original plot. First off, it was Sasuke who was supposed to be fighting this guy with a name that looked like 'yaoi' first. Second, Sakura was supposed to fight Ino. Third, and most important of the three, Hinata was supposed to fight her cousin.

Why was this so important to the girl from another world? Simply because Neji and Hinata's fight sparked the NaruHina movement! That fight initiated the campaign for NaruHina fans world wide! If that fight didn't happen, that spark wouldn't happen! _"Now that I think about it..."_ Mayu gulped. _"I should totally slap myself for this! I've changed way too much, that's the only answer as to why it's this way!"_ She bit her lip.

Hayate coughed, interrupting the dreadful silence. "Now, these two, please step forward." Mayu sighed heavily before doing as she was told. From the corner of her eye, she saw Hinata slowly making her way to the front. Mayu sighed again. She must be dreading this match up as much as her.

The two girls turned and faced each other. Mayu had her shoulders hunched over. Hinata, looking as shy as ever, stood a few feet away from her. She was fiddling with her two index fingers. A slight blush was on the Hyuga's face as her pearl-like eyes stared at her opponent's feet instead of their face. "The two participants in the first fight are Hyuga Hinata and Haruno Sakura. Are you ready?"

"As ready as I'll ever been!" Mayu gave a wry grin.

"_Ano_... H-Hai..." Hinata nodded her head.

Dark eyes narrowed at the two girls, though it was mostly aimed at the multi-colored hair one. Sasuke frowned as he continued to watch his teammate. She was still holding on to her arm as if it pained. _"Mayu, you moron…"_ His eyes fell to the floor. _"And because you're so stubborn, all I can do is watch. I don't know anything about that other girl's abilities. Further more, you don't know either. You stupid reckless idiot!"_

Mayu sneezed.

"We will now be starting the match." Hayate gestured towards the left and right balconies. "Will everyone except the two participants please move to the upper levels so that we may begin?" The eighteen remaining genin moved quickly up the stairs to either the left or right. Mayu watched them go, silently wishing that she and Hinata were apart of them. Green eyes locked on onyx. Sasuke had mouthed something to her.

"_Use it_," he had said.

Mayu turned her head back. _"Use it? Use what?"_ she thought, confused. The girl heard her loud teammate greet Kakashi in a very loud way. This caused her head to snap up. The jounin was about to walk right pass her.

"Don't push yourself too hard, Sakura. If it goes too far, I will jump in and stop it." And then he continued on his merry little way. Mayu sighed. She _suppose_ that that was a little encouraging. It wasn't like he had to do something like that for this match, unless…

A sharp, but quiet gasp escaped her mouth. _"He knows that I got it instead!"_ Mayu bit the bottom lip. _"He better not stop this match! Even if it is Hinata-chan, I don't want to lose just because of a default!"_ Mayu stared at Hinata's awkward posture. _"The real problem is…"_

"I never thought… that we would fight each other here, Sakura-chan." Hinata's soft voice interrupted Mayu's thoughts.

"You have no idea how much I thought the same thing, Hinata-chan." The kunoichi grinned. "Even so…"

"Yes, even so…"

"I couldn't bear to look weak in front of those I admire," Mayu murmured. "Lee-kun, Panda-chan… and…" An image of Uchiha Sasuke appeared in her mind. "You, more than anyone, can understand this, right?" Hinata nodded and took a glance up at Mayu's blond teammate.

"_Naruto-kun…"_ she thought, blushing. She turned her pearl eyes back to her fellow Leaf kunoichi.

The boys of Team 7 warily stared down at the two kunoichi. "Hey, hey, Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto caught the jounin's attention. "What's with her eyes? They're strange. I've noticed them before, but I never asked Hinata personally."

"Yeah, they're also the same eyes as that guy," Sasuke commented.

"Oh, the one apart of fuzzy-brow's team!"

"Sasuke, I'm surprised that you don't know about the Hyuga clan." Kakashi looked back towards Hinata's eyes, ignoring the angry snort from the Uchiha. "The Hyuga family is often regarded as Konoha's most illustrious clan. Among the Hyuga, there is unique taijutsu passed down through the generations."

"Taijutsu…? Well, that's okay! Sakura-chan is the best when it comes to taijutsu!" Naruto exclaimed. "She's even taught me a few things!"

"No, Naruto, the Hyuga's taijutsu is very different from what you're used to." Kakashi continued. "Normal style of taijutsu is basically hitting and damages the outside of the body, but the Hyuga style is all about damaging the inside of the body."

"The inside?!"

"That's right. With those eyes, a Hyuga can attack internally, leaving the body, as a whole, affected. Sakura's style of taijutsu and Hinata's style of taijutsu will clash in this match."

"So that guy—he's a Hyuga, too?" Naruto questioned.

"Yes, most likely, the two are cousins." Sasuke narrowed his eyes. It was another advanced bloodline. Would his teammate stand a chance against it?

"Now… please begin."

Neither kunoichi moved. "Before we start, Hinata, I have something to say to you." Mayu's voice caused Hinata to look directly into her eyes. Everyone else paid attention as well, including Neji. "Don't hold back just because we're friends!" Hinata's eyes grew slightly wider. "I know you've gotten stronger since the last time and I've gotten stronger, too. If you hold back, even a little bit, I'll crush you! I won't show any mercy! You will fight with everything you've got! Don't pretend this is one of our spars, you'll only get hurt!"

Several people raised their eyebrows in surprise. They did not know that Hinata and Sakura sparred with each other. Not even the girls' own teammates knew. _"When did she meet a Hyuga?" _Sasuke thought. _"That little sneak already knows about the Hyuga's abilities then?"_

Hinata dropped down into a basic stance of the Gentle Fist. "Byakugan…!" Veins bulged around the girls eyes. Mayu smiled. This had to be the worst opponent she could have received. Not only was it not right, but in this match, Mayu would have to rely on only taijutsu. She had remembered that Kakashi had told Sasuke not to use his Sharingan in the original plot. Also, in his match, Sasuke hadn't used a single jutsu.

"_That's not good."_ Mayu broke out into a cold sweat.

Above the two, Neji snorted. "She's going to lose," he murmured. Naruto's ear twitched. Sasuke's head turned towards the haughty Hyuga.

"Hey…! Don't underestimate our teammate!" Naruto shouted while pointed a finger. "I'll kick your ass if you insult Sakura-chan again!" Neji merely scoffed, feeling that the blond was inferior to him. And yet he still chose to explain.

"I didn't mean _your_ teammate," he said, crossing his arms. "I meant Hinata. She will lose."

"And what makes you so sure?" Naruto asked, calming down somewhat.

"Because she is nothing but a failure." Neji did not notice the way Naruto's eyebrow twitch. "She too nice and kind. She's easily swayed by others. Hinata was never meant to be a ninja. There is no way she will win this fight, regardless of your teammate's abilities, or… lack thereof."

"What'd you say?!" Naruto shouted. Sasuke had to hold him back.

The blond growled as he glared at Neji. Sure, he had confidence in _Sakura's_ abilities, but this guy did not have to tell the results of the fight before they even started! It pissed him off that the arrogant Hyuga stating that his own cousin will lose like it was a scientific fact. _"And just because he thinks of her as a failure…! I would so pay to see Hinata kick this guy's ass and show him whose boss!"_ Perhaps what had pissed him off more was the fact that Neji called Hinata a failure. _"A failure… something I was always called…"_

"Defend yourself!" Hinata's soft voice was picked up by Naruto, causing him to focus on the beginning battle. The two girls stared each other down before racing towards one another. Hinata attacked first. With a battle cry, her palm reached for Mayu's chest. Luckily, the girl had ducked, successfully dodging Hinata's attack. The two seemed to be dancing at a fast pace, attacking and dodging. So far the two had not landed any hits. _"This isn't working…"_ Hinata thought, blocking another kick from Mayu. _"She knows what I will do because she is used to my movements." _Unbeknownst to the Hyuga, Mayu was thinking similar thoughts. _"I need to do something different if I want to actually hit her."_

Mayu delivered a roundhouse kick. The heel of her foot connected with Hinata's chin. The sound of her foot colliding with bone was a cracking sort of noise. The Hyuga rolled away from the girl. Mayu slowly put her foot back down. _"Her defense… Did she let me do that?"_ Green eyes narrowed as they watched the Hyuga heir stand.

"As I first thought," Neji began. "Even with her apparent advantage, she still couldn't stop someone from actually landing a hit on her. Truly pathetic." Naruto almost growled. He was getting sick of hearing that arrogant tone. It was bad enough he heard it from Sasuke from time to time. His hands clutched the railing as his blue eyes stayed focused on the two girls.

"Your kicks… have gotten stronger, Sakura-chan," Hinata remarked. She rubbed her chin, trying to dull the pain she felt. Mayu nodded. That wasn't the only thing. She had noticed that it took little time for Hinata to stand up from that. The first time she was hit in the face, their secret training session was over. No one had ever hit Hinata in the face with a lot of force before. That was understandable, so Mayu had let it slide that day.

"_Hinata… Her body has gotten tougher!" _The kunoichi grinned again. _"Good, that means I won't hold any of my punches."_ Mayu dropped down into her standard stance. Hinata, however, remained straight up.

"_Ano_… I have something to show for this fight," Hinata started. She played with her index fingers, twirling them around in that ultra cute way. Mayu almost squealed. It was more or less a weakness. Good thing the Hyuga didn't know about it. "I believe—I believe that I will have to do something different because you know my fighting style well." The girl dropped one of her arms; the other arm reached behind her. She pulled something from her back pouch. The girl held it up for all to see. Mayu blinked in surprise. "This is my very own weapon."

Her weapon was actually two weapons. The pair looked similar to shuriken, but the spikes were curved and there were more of them. The color was pure silver. They were also bigger—much bigger—than the average shuriken. Hinata placed one of the weapons in her other hand. Her fingers clutched its middle. She held her arms crossed. "Prepare yourself…!" She flung the metallic weapons at Mayu. They sliced through the air with a distinct whirring noise.

Sasuke smirked. Mayu's speed might've been lower than his at this point in time, but when it came to objects flying at her, they never hit. _"Weapons, even ones I've never seen before, won't work on her."_

**Inner Mayu: I'm the Dodge Ball Queen back at school! There's no way I'll get hit!**

The weapons zoomed towards the girl. It practically happened in slow motion. The sharp objects were inches away from her face when she leaned backed. Her hands touched the ground. Green eyes watched the spikes whizz centimeters pass her face. _"Good thing this body is flexible."_ Mayu's eyes widen when she saw that the spikes had lodged into the wall behind her. They had created a huge dent. Just how heavy were they?! With a grunt, Mayu forced her upper body back up. Again, her eyes grew wide when she saw Hinata rushing at her, ready to strike.

She heard Naruto calling out her name right before Hinata's palm made contact with her abdomen. The force of the hit caused the girl to go flying back. She rolled away from the Hyuga and ended up sprawled on the floor. Mayu panted heavily. _"Shit…! I can hardly move now! This stupid curse mark is causing me too many problems! I can't even use jutsu…!" _A sudden buzzing noise filled her ears. She barely had dodged Hinata's weapons in time. Mayu looked at her opponent from her crouched position. The girl had the two weapons in her hands again. _"She… controls them?"_

Hinata had a small frown on her face. She dropped her arms to her side. "I don't understand," she murmured. "Are you holding back? Why do you keep underestimating me, Sakura-chan? You say all those things about not holding back just because we're friends, and yet… you won't take me seriously. I… I tried to become stronger. I think—I think I truly have become stronger. Because of you and—_ano_—someone else… I feel that I'm slightly more… certain of myself. I was… hoping I could show you… and—and… everyone that I'm stronger, but… ho-how can I do that when you're underestimating me? It's like you said before… 'If you hold back, even a little bit, or I'll crush you.' I find your words… appropriate for this match. Are you—are you going to let me continue to attack you?" The Hyuga dropped down into a stance.

Mayu continued to pant as she stared at Hinata. She could tell her words were true. She also noticed the disappointed tone in her voice. Her fingers curled into a tight fist. _"I'm sorry, Hinata. I really haven't been my best and it's all because I'm afraid I'll use this curse mark." _Green eyes focused on the floor. _"If only I wouldn't have taken that hit for Sasuke…!"_ Mayu slowly stood, the body shaking from the strain. Hinata's attack did more than just knock her down.

Sasuke watched this all happened through narrowed eyes. His hands clutched the railing. A frown was also on his face. He could not understand why Mayu was being so… weak! It couldn't have been that curse mark, could it? Mayu was usually smart while in the heat of battle. By now, she would have already figured out a way to defeat an opponent, friend or not. The longer Sasuke stared at his teammate getting hitting hit with Hinata's Gentle Fist, the angrier he got. Sure, she was blocking and dodging some of the time, but it still wasn't right. Luckily, Hinata had put those weapons away. At least, she didn't have to worry about more attacks. But then again, the girl was already weakened. Naruto was unusually silent during the almost vicious beating. Once more, Mayu was knocked to the ground.

"Sakura-chan…" Naruto whispered. Sasuke took a glance at his blond teammate, and then turned back to the fight. He growled.

"What the hell is this?!" His shout caused Mayu to turn towards him in surprise. Hinata had stopped walking towards Mayu because she, too, had looked up. In fact, everyone's heads were turned to him. "Is this truly all you have in you?!" Sasuke glared down at the girl, not caring for the stunned look she was giving him. "This is stupid! How can anyone look at you with respect when you're acting like such a weak little girl, _Sakura…_?!"

Kakashi narrowed his visible eye. When Sasuke had said his teammate's name, he couldn't help but notice that it sounded much like an insult. His eye moved over to his female student. She was glaring up at him. She had seemed to take it as an insult as well. _"I wonder why…?" _he thought. He watched his student's body tremble as she looked down at the ground. Her hands were, once again, curled into tight fists.

_"Sasuke…!"_ Mayu grind her teeth together. As she stood up, her head also rose. Hinata watched her friend's movements in slight surprise.

"_Her eyes… have changed."_ The Hyuga went into her stance again. A smile graced her features. _"It seems I'm not the only one who draws strength from another…"_

Mayu clutched the cursed arm again. Right now, she didn't care about the consequences of her actions. If she was going to continue to fight, she would need jutsu to help her out. _"Sasuke… how dare you call me that…?! I'll show you weak little girl, Sakura!"_ She rushed towards the Hyuga. Hinata impulsively shot her palm out. Her strike was quick and precise. The force behind her attack shattered the replacement log into pieces. Her Hyuga eyes widen at the sound of a familiar sizzle.

_"Explosive notes…?!"_ Hinata quickly jumped away. Just in time, too. The notes exploded not a few seconds later. The blast sent Hinata flying back. The girl bared her teeth as she tried to stop herself from slamming against the wall. Her hand slid against the ground; eventually she came to a stop. _"That was fast…"_ Her pearl-like eyes darted to and fro, trying to locate the kunoichi. "To the side…!" Hinata barely had time to recognize the hand signs. Snake, Ram, Monkey, Boar, Horse, Tiger…

"**Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu**!"

Mayu inhaled. A large fireball seemed to spew from her very mouth. Several audience members' eyes grew wide. "Whoa…! When did Sakura-chan learn that?!" Naruto shouted, watching the ball of fire. Sasuke smirked as he watched the fire head straight for the stunned Hinata.

"_So she did master it." _It wasn't as big as the one he created when he first learned the jutsu, but from the size of it, Sasuke could tell that it could get the job done.

"_When did—ah… That's why she had those band aids around her face on some days."_ Kakashi smiled behind his mask. _"I wonder if Sasuke was the one to teach her."_

Back to the match, Hinata had quickly stood and decided to meet the attack head on. "**Protective Eight Trigrams: Sixty-Four Palms**!" Her arms moved in a combination of complex movements. It started off slow, but then gradually picked up in speed. The giant flame seemed to engulf the Hyuga heir. Mayu relaxed her stance.

_"Hinata… she wasn't hit, was she?"_ Green eyes watched the flames. They enlarged when the flames suddenly transformed. They flames seemed to actually become bigger and spin around a certain point. It was a fire vortex. "Hinata…!" The Hyuga might have been her opponent, but the fact remains the same. The girl was her friend. Before attacking, Mayu was sure that Hinata would dodge it. But now it seemed like the girl hadn't done that.

Suddenly, a slightly familiar buzzing noise entered her ears. Green eyes grew wide in shock. Mayu instinctively ducked. Luckily she did. If she hadn't, she most likely would not have a head anymore. Mayu watched the weapon returned back to its master's hand. Hinata was in a standard Hyuga stance. The flames around her had either died down, or were beginning to. "How did…?"

"It's an attack that I created myself." Hinata smiled. "It can act as my defense and my attack. Like I said before, I won't hold back and I won't… run away… because that is my-my ninja way!" Blue eyes were wide. Moments later, a smile appeared on a certain ninja's face.

"_I had no idea… that Hinata was so gutsy."_

_"There's no way…! She can't be talking about the one from that episode, can she?"_ Mayu thought. _"She wasn't supposed to learn that yet! The timeline is seriously messed up now! Hinata is so much stronger than she's supposed to be right now! I don't think I can beat her, and yet I can't let her win. If that happens, she'll probably have to fight Naruto in the finals… I have to end this in a draw somehow."_ She bit her bottom lip. The pain in her arm was already started to come back. _"And I need to do it quickly. I can feel the mark spreading on this arm."_

Mayu stood up straight, trying to concentrate on her opponent rather than the cursed arm. "SAKURA-CHAN…!" The girl almost groaned at the shout. Of course, it meant something. Damn, she had forgotten about Hinata's other weapon. Mayu moved her head at an angle. The blade whizzed by a split second later. With a thud, the weapon had returned to Hinata's other hand.

"That was something else, Hinata-chan. I'm truly impressed, but… weapons like that won't work on me. You missed."

Hinata shook her head. "No…" she began. "I did not." As soon as the last word was spoken, her opponent's left ear split and a thin red line appeared on her cheek. Seconds later, blood seeped through. Mayu cried out as she grabbed her injured ear and cheek. "You see, Sakura, I forced my chakra into these weapons. When I send them flying, that chakra is released. It is pushed out of tiny tunnels, causing it to become thin and sharp. Even if the blade doesn't get you, the chakra will. Because of my abilities, I can see and control how much chakra is let out of those tine holes." Hinata frowned. "If it had gotten any bigger, you would have been decapitated."

_"She can see it…?"_ Mayu pressed a hand against her cheek with more pressure. The hand was now bloody. "That's… pretty amazing, Hinata-chan. But… where on Earth did you get that?" Her voice sounded intrigued. Hinata blushed and looked away.

"I picked it up from one of my missions. I've never seen something like this before, so I took it home with me. It wasn't long before I figured out how to use it effectively." Her eyes turned back to Mayu. "Only those who have my eyes could possibly dodge this attack, but then again… you did dodge it before."

_"That's right… The chakra only comes out of the spikes, so that's why I was able to dodge it before."_ Mayu narrowed her eyes. _"But even with that info, it's not enough seeing as how she can control the weapons' movements."_ Her eyebrows knitted together in thought. _"What the hell am I going to do now?"_ Realization suddenly dawned on her. She slowly removed her hand from her face. _"If I can't see it to dodge because of these eyes... then I'll just get some new eyes."_ Mayu frowned, hoping that the jutsu actually worked. Quickly, her hands ran through the hand signs, stopping on the ram sign. "**Ishikari Style: Mind Transfer Jutsu**!" Once again, several pairs of eyes grew wide when they heard that, including the Hokage's.

_"It… can't be…"_ He had to stop his mouth from dropping open.

"_Mind Transfer Jutsu…?! No effin' way…!"_ Ino repeated in her head. Her hands gripped the metal bar in front of her. Her father, Yamanaka Inoichi, used to tell her some things about another style of the Mind Transfer techniques. He had said that although it was similar, it was considered to be quite different from their family's jutsu. Primarily, the Yamanaka's jutsu were for undercover mission. It was often regarded as a great spy technique. But the jutsu her father had told her about was different. It could be an actual attack against another. Also, the time it took for the spirit to leave the body and enter another's was three times as fast as the Yamanaka's jutsu. That was one of the reason that it could be considered an attack. And even then, the jutsu was no longer usable by anyone. _"But other than those details, how can Sakura use the mind transfer jutsu? Anyone outside of the Yamanaka clan can't use it, so how can she?!"_

Down belong, both girls' bodies had limped. Their heads were tilted downwards as if their souls had left. The entire room was quiet, waiting for something, anything to happen. Suddenly, Hinata's head inclined, showing her pearl-like eyes. _"It didn't work…?"_ Sasuke looked confused. _"It worked fine with Haku."_ That's when he noticed the un-Hinata-like grin on the Hyuga's face. A smirk tugged at his lips.

Sakura's head also moved up. Startled eyes darted to and fro. Green eyes zoned on the person opposite of her. A pink blush appeared on the girl's face. "Sakura-chan…?!" Hinata's voice came from Sakura's mouth.

"Hell yeah…! It worked pretty well!" Sakura's voice came from Hinata's mouth.

"_But… the Ishikari clan was…" _The Hokage's thoughts were interrupted by a scream. All eyes were on Sakura's body. They watched the girl claw at her arm as if something was crawling in her skin (these wounds, they will not heal! Fear is how… -cough- sorry…).

Another scream from Hinata echoed throughout the giant room. "Hey, what's happening to Sakura-chan…?!" Naruto asked. He didn't quite understand the whole Mind Transfer Jutsu thing well.

"That's actually Hinata in Sakura's body, dope." Sasuke was quick to correct, causing the blond to momentarily glare at his rival. His blue eyes turned back to the screaming girl.

"Okay, so what's wrong with Hinata, then?"

"I… don't know…" His dark eyes went from Sakura's body to Hinata's body. Hinata's face looked distraught, guilty, and utterly afraid. _"It's that mark again, isn't it? Hinata can't handle it at all! Pretty soon, Mayu's going to release the jutsu because of the pain that it's causing Hinata."_

"Hinata-chan…" Mayu murmured, dropping the weapons from _her_ hands. They fell to the ground with a clang. She watched her friend dropped to the ground, still screaming. The Hyuga's blood-curdling screams literally gave the girl goose bumps, and not the good kind. _"Damn it…! How does Ino do it?!"_ She shifted her feet a couple times before finally remembering. Hinata's palms slapped together. "Release…!" The two minds were put back. This caused Mayu to receive the full pain of the curse mark. "_Nngh_…!" She slowly moved into a standing position.

Hinata had clawed the bandages right off, leaving the curse mark exposed and bloody. "That…" Hinata panted. "That was terrible…!"

"You're telling me…" Mayu tried covered the mark, but that was a little hard to do because it had spread again. It covered most of her arm now. "It was worse seeing you in that pain. I will never do that again unless I have to." The Hokage watched with interested eyes.

"_Did it really work?" _he thought as he studied Haruno Sakura's appearance closely.

The Hyuga heir finally got her breathing under control—as did Mayu—and picked up her discarded silver weapons. "Shall we continue?" She stared at her opponent, still a bit shaky from that… dreadful torment. She briefly wondered how her opponent could handle it.

"Of course," Mayu answered. She smirked a bit. "How do you do it…?" she murmured. Hinata's eyes widen when she noticed that the girl's pinks roots had changed colors. Her eyes had flashed colors as well. Finally, the colors of her friend stopped. Hinata's mouth dropped opened. The heir wasn't the only one, though. Neji, as well as the other rookies, stared in disbelief. To them, and everyone else in the room, it seemed as though…

Haruno Sakura had the Byakugan.

"What…? Bu-But that's impossible!" Hinata's voice was almost frantic. She shook her head a few times, and then looked back at her opponent. Mayu's appearance stilled looked similar to a person belonging to the Hyuga can. Neji clutched the railing, watching the newly pearl-eyed girl.

"_What is this…?"_ He narrowed his own lavender eyes.

A certain Sound ninja smirked, and then licked his lips with his abnormally long tongue. _"How interesting…"_ he thought.

"So how do I turn these things on?" Mayu asked; Hinata was too stunned to answer. "I think I just force some chakra into my eyes, and then—whoa! This is what you can see…? Amazing…" Mayu cracked her knuckles, and then did an imitation of the Hyuga stance. "I may not know a lot about the Hyuga way, but I've fought you enough times to get the basics down. Bring it on, Hinata-chan." The girl didn't move. "Fine, I'll come to you!"

Mayu wasted no time in dashing towards Hinata. The Hyuga heir, by then, had snapped out of it and threw her metallic weapons. The two deadly blades zoomed at the oncoming girl at a faster speed than before. Using her chakra, a burst a speed sent Mayu airborne. Everything seemed to move in slow motion. Her body went pass the two weapons. She had successfully dodged the blades, as well as the chakra. Her hand touched the ground. Her body tilted; using the momentum, Mayu landed back on her feet.

Hinata began to attack Mayu, using her Gentle Fist. The two girls attacked, dodged, blocked against one another. It almost seemed like they were in some type of dance. Burst of chakra emitted from their hands each time an attack was made. _"Her speed matches mine…! Her attacks match mine as well…! We're too evenly matched! This battle could go on forever!"_ Hinata dropped down and swung her foot around, causing Mayu to stagger. Hinata took this chance to drive her palm up against Mayu's chin. The imitation Hyuga fell back and rolled away. She planted her feet, and then pushed herself forward to prevent from sliding back more.

Mayu panted heavily as she stared at Hinata through blurry eyes. _"I can't keep doing this…"_ Once again, her body started changing colors again. The dark roots were replaced with pink, and her eyes returned to green. Hinata was also panting heavily. _"She won't stop… I have to finish this now!"_

_"She's wasted too much chakra,"_ Kakashi thought. _"Using the Hyuga's abilities took a lot out of her."_

"This battle is incredible! I never thought Hinata could fight like this! Look at her go…!" Naruto remarked with a grin.

"Idiot, you're supposed to be rooting for your own teammate!" Kiba muttered. His statement went unheard by the blond, who continued to cheer for Hinata.

Mayu turned to her loud teammate in surprise. _"That's it…!"_ She turned her head back to her adversary. _"It's over… Hinata, no matter how much stronger you've gotten; you still won't survive my next attack. One last chakra based attack… That's all I think I can do." _The mark had spread up her arm; it was now at her neck. _"Before it spreads to this face, I have to end it. Once my chakra is all gone, this body will automatically take from the cursed mark."_ Mayu groaned. The mark had begun to spread again, causing the kunoichi to cry out.

_"Damn it…! What the hell?!"_ Sasuke clenched his fist as he stared at his teammate, who was still crying out. He could actually see her veins bulging at the strain. "Hey…! Get it together already! Are you really going to let yourself go?! SAKURA!"

"SAKURA-CHAN…!" Naruto called out to her.

Mayu clamped her teeth together. _"No! I can't let this thing take this body over…"_ Green eyes grew wide. _"Not when I'm the first in control!"_ Again, Mayu cried out, but this time it was more like a battle cry. "WHO NEEDS THIS SHITTY POWER, ANYWAY?!" The curse mark glowed a fiery red, and then slowly retracted back to its original spot on her arm. The color also returned to black.

_"What…?!"_ Anko stared down at the girl in surprise. _"The curse mark receded!"_ Mayu smirked. She, too, was surprised, yet glad that the curse mark went back into place.

"And the beat goes on!" Mayu shouted, causing Hinata to become alert. "Get ready, Hinata, this is my final attack!" The kunoichi quickly ran through some hand signs.

"Not yet…!" Hinata rushed towards Mayu, palm at the ready. Her lightning quick strike made contact with the girl's body; only to have the body disappeared with a popping noise. "Oh no…!"

"Oh _yes_…!" Mayu's voice came from behind Hinata. The Hyuga girl gasped. "Transform!"

A collection of gasps were heard all throughout the room. Hinata slowly turned around to meet the 'final attack.' Her mouth dropped open. There, standing before her, was a naked Uzumaki Naruto. Okay, so he wasn't naked; he did have one some underwear. But this version of Naruto was older, more muscular, and just down right gorgeous. "_Ah_…!" Hinata squeaked.

"WHAT THE FUCCKKK!!"

"You wouldn't hurt me, would you, Hinata-chan?" The older Naruto spoke. He leaned in towards the girl. "I'll give you a kiss on the cheek if you don't."

"No… No fair…!" Hinata squeaked. She staggered a bit before falling backwards. Her creamy skin had turned a brilliant shade of red. Her eyes had transformed into spirals. A drizzle of blood came from her nose. Two dull clangs were heard. The two weapons, that have been hovering the entire time, had fallen to the ground. The older Naruto gave a foxy grin and a victory sign.

"I knew that would work!" In a cloud of smoke, the older version of Naruto had transformed back into Mayu. "**Sexy Jutsu**… successful!"

Sasuke slapped his forehead and dragged his hand over his eye. _"I can't believe she did that…" _he thought. _"But wow… She learned something from both me and Naruto." _His eyes turned to his blond teammate, who was currently blushing. _"She is a little sneak…"_

Down below, Hayate coughed. He looked at both girls. Mayu, although still grinning, was panting a great deal. She looked down at Hinata's fallen body through one eye, since the other one was closed. Hinata, blushing mad, was out cold. "I'm declaring this match over…" Hayate coughed. "Haruno Sakura, as winner of the first preliminary, will advance to the next stage of the chuunin exam."

"YEAH…! WAY TO GO, SAKURA-CHAN!" Naruto shouted. "But you didn't have to use the Sexy Jutsu on Hinata…" He murmured, frowning a bit. "And you really didn't have to use me either." Mayu tried to control her breathing, but really couldn't. But it didn't matter.

"_I did it…"_ she thought, gasping for air. _"I did it…"_ A distraught look suddenly appeared on her face. _"I COMPLETELY CHANGED THE PLOT AGAIN!"_ Mayu grunted, and then fell back. A pair of arms caught her before she hit the ground, though. She turned her head back to see Kakashi, her sensei.

"_Hm_… Not bad, Sakura." His tone of voice told the kunoichi that he was mildly impressed. She gave him a tired grin.

"No sweat, right?" Mayu continued to pant. Her two teammates jumped over the banister and rushed over to them.

"Sakura-chan, you were so cool!" Naruto gushed. He turned. "And so was Hinata! She sure did put up a fight!" He saw that Hinata's sensei, Kurenai, had picked up the unconscious girl. He turned back to his own teammate. "Wasn't she awesome, Sasuke?! Man, I can't wait for my own match!" He laughed out loud.

"If… it… wasn't for you two… I probably wouldn't have… kept going…" Mayu smiled. "Thank you, you guys. And Hinata-chan, too… If I hadn't been her sparring partner, this fight would have turned badly for me." Mayu felt a pain in her chest as she continued to breathe heavily. "But her strikes… Man, I don't want to tangle… with Hinata like that… again." A hand rested on her head. She looked up; her vision was starting to become blurry again.

"Nice job, cocoon."

"Shut up… bird brain…" Mayu grimaced a bit.

"_A person that can copy a bloodline…?"_ The Sound jounin thought with a twisted smirk on his face. _"I wouldn't believe it if I hadn't just seen it with my own eyes."_ His tongue slithered out over his lips again. _"That girl… very fascinating… Perhaps it was fate that she took the mark instead. Magnificent." _

Sarutobi lowered his eyelids, watching Team 7 down on the arena floor. _"That girl… isn't Haruno Sakura."_ He deduced in his head. _"It can't be. Has another Ishikari been alive all this time? I must speak with that girl."_ Hinata was seen being carried away by a stretcher. Another medic came over to the team of four.

"Haruno Sakura, please come with us so that we may treat your injuries."

"That is not necessary. I will take care of her." Kakashi stated.

"But, sensei…!" Naruto began. The special jounin dropped down to Mayu's level. He placed a hand on her shoulder.

"You're coming with me right now." Mayu opened her mouth to protest. "I know you want to see Naruto and Sasuke's matches, but we need to seal that mark." Mayu looked slightly dejected before nodding her head in defeat.

Sasuke held out a hand. Mayu gratefully took it. Her eyes widen as she was pulled off the floor. Green eyes stared into onyx eyes in surprise. The Uchiha released her hand, and then shoved both hands into his pockets. "Let's go."

"I would, but my legs won't move. You're going to have to carry me! Hahaha!" The girl was promptly thrown over Kakashi's shoulder. "_Ahh_! Hey…! I was just joking! Put me down!" The girl struggled.

"Sorry, no can do." Kakashi began to walk away, fully ignoring Mayu's shouts of protest. Sasuke and Naruto watched with frowns on their faces.

"_Aww_, man…! I wanted Sakura-chan see me kick ass!" The blond whined loudly.

"_Mayu… You better come back to see my match." _Sasuke watched her departing back.

"Okay, let's move on to the second match." Hayate coughed again. Naruto and Sasuke turned their attention to the giant screen, as did everyone else. The screen light up, and then began flashing names again. The two ninja who were to fight next appeared on the screen.

**Aburame Shino**

**VS.**

**Abumi Zaku**

"Would these two please come down?" Hayate called out. Sasuke and Naruto moved to go back up. The next two fighters made their way down to the arena. They walked in silence as they made their way to the staircase.

"Hey, Sasuke…" Naruto spoke.

"What is it?"

"I might be going a little crazy with excitement, but… Did you see those marks on Sakura-chan's body during her fight?" Naruto asked. "And now their gone." The Uchiha didn't answer for a few moments as they continued to walk.

"I'll tell you about it once we see Sakura again. She might be able to explain it better than I can." Sasuke crossed his arms and pressed his back against the wall. "For now, let's just watch the next match."

"I really, really hope Sakura-chan gets back soon—_oooh_! And Hinata, too!" His blue eyes turned to Neji. _"Say something about Hinata now, you snobby jerk!"_ He grinned when the Hyuga turned his eyes away from him.

* * *

Mayu walked behind her sensei. Kakashi had put her down as soon as they left the room. The two were now traveling through a very dark passageway. Mayu held out her hand. She stared at the object that Sasuke had, inconspicuously, given her. It was one soldier pill. _"He wants me to see his and Naruto's match that badly…? I guess it's only fair." _She put the pill in her mouth and placed it under her tongue. _"I'll actually take it after Kakashi seals this mark."_

The jounin suddenly stopped and turned to his student. "We'll do it here. Lay down on the floor." Mayu nodded her head meekly, and then did as she was told. The floor was cold and hard, she noted. She hoped that she wouldn't have to lay there for long. Green eyes watched Kakashi take out multiple kunai. With the kunai, he made several markings around his student's body. Next, he forced the tips of the kunai into the floor around Mayu. The girl looked up at her sensei, wondering what he was about to do next.

Kakashi removed a glove from his hand. He bit into his thumb, and then pressed his index and middle finger against the bleeding appendage. He moved all around the girl and kunai, marking the floor with his blood. Mayu tried to see what the symbols were, but was quickly ordered by Kakashi to keep her head straight. Eventually, Mayu felt his warm fingers press and slide up and down the cursed arm. It felt as if he was drawing on her arm. Mayu flinched away at his touch, and then relaxed.

His fingers left her skin. "Alright… It'll be over quickly." He knelt down next to the girl, careful not to touch the markings on the floor. "You ready…?" Mayu nodded, watching her sensei closely. "Don't wonder, Sakura. It will be fine. Look at the ceiling." Green eyes focused on the ceiling. Kakashi nodded, and then performed several hand signs. This continued on for several moments before the jounin finally stopped on the Rat sign. "**Curse Sealing**!" He placed his uncovered palm on the pitch black mark on the girl's arm.

Mayu tried her best to stifle her screams. She bit her bottom lip, unintentionally drawing blood. It slid down her chin as Kakashi's blood markings seem to travel from the floor up to her arm. Finally, the pain stopped. Mayu slowly opened her eyes and blinked wearily before sitting up. She looked down at the arm to see that around the curse mark, there seemed to be a barrier of some sorts. She grunted as her hand moved to cover the mark. "This hur-hurts more than… getting stu-stung by ki-killer bees…!" The kunoichi gasped as another wave of pain washed over her. She breathed deeply.

"That should do it." Kakashi's voice made the girl look up at him. "The next time that curse mark starts acting up, the seal _should_ keep it in check. But remember, this seal is only as strong as your will. If there is ever a time where you begin to doubt yourself, Sakura, the curse will be unleashed and by then you won't be able to stop it." Mayu moved her tongue around, trying to find the soldier pill. She felt that now was a good time to actually take it. After taking it, she instantly felt a little better.

"I… got it…" Mayu murmured, and then fell backwards. If she remembered correctly, the next part of the series happened to have Orochimaru in it. She definitely wanted it was appear that she was not conscious in his presence. She heard Kakashi chuckled.

"And here I was thinking she was going to get angry with me for questioning her iron will." Mayu had to stop herself from grinning. Iron will, indeed, she thought. She heard movement.

"My… You have grown since the last time we encountered one another," a new voice entered her ears. Mayu, once again, had to stop herself from making any actions. "To think you've become strong enough to perform the Curse Sealing Jutsu…" Footsteps were heard. Mayu could have sworn she heard creepy music playing somewhere in the background.

"You…" The tone in Kakashi's voice was menacing. Mayu hoped that she'd never have to hear that voice directed her at.

"Long time, no see… Hatake Kakashi."

"Orochimaru…!"

"No offense Kakashi, but I did not come to see you." Orochimaru took a step forward. Kakashi quickly moved in front of Orochimaru's line of vision. He had been staring hungrily at his student's body. Orochimaru chuckled. "My business is with that girl behind you."

"_He can't be talking about me, can he?!"_ Mayu thought. _"But why…?"_

"What do you want with Sakura?" Kakashi almost growled out.

"Sakura…? So that is her name? I was quite entertained by her fight. It's not every day you see someone copy an advanced bloodline. That girl has an amazing ability. You're quite lucky to have that type of ability, Kakashi."

"Is that why… Is that why you gave her the-"

"Oh, no, no, no… She simply got in the way of giving that present to Sasuke-kun, that's all. It was very… selfish of her. I must admit I was quite angry to have my well thought out plans blow up in my face… quite literally, but after what I just witnessed… It appears that I have an ace in the hole. Sasuke-kun is my first choice, but now… he's not my only." Orochimaru took a few steps forward. This caused Kakashi to crouch into an offensive position.

"Stop…! Come any closer and I'll destroy you!" Chakra gathered in the palm of Kakashi's hand. Orochimaru actually seemed taken aback by the sight of it. The sound it made was similar to birds chirping. "I don't care if you are one of the Sanin… Take one step closer to Sakura and one of us will die here!" Orochimaru smirked, and then chuckled. His chuckles turned into few blown out laughter as if he found it extremely amusing that Kakashi was standing up to him. "Oh, you think I'm kidding?"

The snake Sanin stopped laughing, but the face of mirth remained. "Poor Kakashi… Do you really think that that seal will stop the girl from coming to me on her own? I saw it in the forest of death; I saw it in her fight. She desires to be strong. She desires to have power because she can't bear for people around her to think she is weak. Much like Sasuke-kun, she has an ambition, a goal. And to reach that goal, she, much like Sasuke-kun and I, need power. She shows similar characteristics to Sasuke-kun, which means only one thing… She, too, is an avenger and will stop at nothing to kill whoever it is she's after. I wonder who it could be."

"No, it can't be! Not Sakura!" Even as he said this, he could not help but to think Orochimaru could be on to something. _"Ishikari… Could it really be? And does she know about the massacre? … No! I refuse to believe that! Sakura isn't like Sasuke when it comes down to it." _Kakashi narrowed his visible eye.

"You can't stop it. At some point, they will both come to me." Orochimaru smirked, and then turned away. "Unless of course… you really kill me. If that happens, that won't have a power source to go to." He walked away. "But you know you cannot kill me, don't you?" He disappeared, laughing sadistically.

The chakra that had gathered in Kakashi's hand had dispersed. The jounin stared at the spot where Orochimaru had disappeared. He took deep shuddering breathes. Before the snake Sanin had left, he had given Kakashi a dose of killer intent. The effect had got the job done. It literally scared the thought to kill Orochimaru right out of him. _"One of us will die here…?"_ Cold sweat ran down his skin. _"I must be going insane…"_ Kakashi stood up straight. They were brave words in the face of the snake Sanin. Next time, he might not have been so lucky. The special jounin sighed in relief.

Mayu choose this time to sit up. She did so quietly, not wanting to Kakashi to know that she was up so soon. "So now… because of what I did in my match with Hinata, Oro-teme believes I can help him with his ambition as well." A frown became visible on her face. A growl escaped her lips as she glared at the floor. Kakashi turned around in surprise.

"Sakura…! You were up this whole time?" The jounin wiped his brow. Had she overheard everything? Mayu did not respond to Kakashi question. Instead, the girl turned to her superior.

"Sensei… I would never go to that man, never!" She gave her sensei a fierce, determined look. "If you ever doubt that fact… with these hands, I will execute the ultimate sacrifice. I will destroy Orochimaru's plans by killing what he wants… me…"

"Sakura…" Kakashi murmured. The girl stood up, and then shoved a hand into her pouch. She pulled out a roll of bandages. She began wrapping up her cursed arm.

"It's true that I want power. He was right about me wanting to kill someone and in order to do that—I need power, but I… I would never try to gain that power by any means. I will gain my own strength. I will not rely on something like this to help me achieve my goal." She finished tightening the bandage. "Kakashi-sensei… I do what I think is right and going to him would not be right." Green eyes finally looked up at the jounin, who looked a bit stunned.

Kakashi smiled underneath his mask. "There was no doubt in my mind," he said. Mayu nodded, and then grinned. "Shall we go watch the rest of the matches since you seem to be fine?" Mayu shook her head.

"Actually, I want to check on Hinata-chan first. Plus, I need to have my ear looked at. I really hope I don't get an infection. Hinata-chan was a little brutal."

"But what should I tell Naruto and Sasuke?"

"Tell them… I got lost on the road of life."

Kakashi gave his laughing student a flat look.

* * *

Thanks to all those who reviewed last chapter!

Next time: _Top Ten!_


	7. Top Ten

A nervous smile tugged at her lips. The effects of having pearls staring—glaring at her were beginning to happen. The two girls had been staring at each other since they made eye contact. "So..." Mayu began. "I'm guessing you'd like to know how I copied your bloodline, right?" An affirmative nod from the Hyuga heir was enough to make Mayu sweat. Explaining something that she did not fully understand herself was not going to be easy. It actually caused her stomach to flop around. And there was the added bonus of having sweet little Hinata staring suspiciously. There was only so much that Mayu could take in a moment.

The girl cleared her throat, but didn't speak. "Sakura-chan." The way Hinata had said that name made Mayu cringe. "I am slightly familiar with the Yamanaka clan's jutsu. What you did, although similar, was not one of their jutsu. In fact, I believe that you said—what was it? Ishikari style…? Yes, I believe that's what you said. That name is foreign to me, but it sounds like a surname. Where did you learn that type of jutsu? I've never heard of a jutsu that could actually copy a _bloodline_." Mayu chuckled uneasily as she rubbed the back of her head.

"Wow, Hinata-chan, I'm bowled over by your intellect." She remarked as she placed her hand back in her lap. She had sat down on a stool near Hinata's bed; the girl was sitting up in the bed still. Five minutes had gone by since Mayu had entered the room. And only three minutes since Hinata had actually awakened from her Naruto-generated dreams. For two minutes, Mayu wondered why Hinata was bleeding from her nose again. "So anyway… you're not going to wipe your nose?"

"Sakura-chan, please do not change the subject." Despite saying this, Hinata's face grew red. She leaned to the side and reached for the box of tissues. After quickly wiping at her nose, the heir began speaking again. "How did you get the Byakugan?" Mayu sighed heavily.

"The hell if I know…" She sighed again at Hinata's dumbfounded look. "But I'll try to explain." Mayu then began to relay what had happened on the mission in the Land of Waves. There were times where Hinata didn't quite understand what was being said (Mayu was horrible at description, after all), but she did get the general idea of it all.

"So you instinctively used that jutsu in that battle?" Hinata narrowed her eyes in slight confusion. "It might be coincidental, but that sounds an awful lot like an advanced bloodline being used for the first time."

"_Eh_…?!"

"From what I know, that is." Hinata continued. "When a person has the potential to use an advanced bloodline, it doesn't activate unless that person is under copious amounts of stress. For you, it was the thought of losing your teammate to death. Life or death situation… For me… it was to be stronger so that I could impress those around me. That is a stressful situation." Mayu blinked, and then looked towards the ceiling.

_"Come to think of it,"_ she thought. _"Sasuke did tell me that when he thought I died, he gained a boost of power. That power most likely came from getting the Sharingan. It must have been nerve-racking to have to loose a teammate so early. But me…? An advanced bloodline…? No flippin' way!"_

"Did you hear what I said?" Mayu's head snapped back down. She looked utterly confused. Hinata sighed, and then repeated. "I said that I don't think a Haruno has ever shown an advanced bloodline before, though, so I could be mistaken."

Mayu rubbed the cursed bandaged arm. "Yeah…" she murmured. Her green eyes were trained on the marble floor. Hinata noticed her fidgety actions and frowned. She placed a hand on Mayu's arm, causing the girl to look up at her.

"Sakura…?"

"It's not an advanced bloodline. There's no way that it can be." Mayu stood up. Her sudden movement caused Hinata to reel back, startled. "Are you feeling better yet, Hinata? If so, we should head back so that we can see the rest of the matches. You don't want to miss out on Naruto's fight, right?" The girl turned and headed for the door.

"Ch-Chotto matte, Sakura-chan…!" Hinata flung the covers from her body and scrambled after the girl who had already disappeared from the room.

* * *

"SAKURA-CHAN…! HINATA…!" A certain loud mouth waved over the two girls. They had not gotten to the stop step before they were crowded by the male members of Team 7 and 8. Not used to so much attention from her peers, Hinata shrunk away, slightly behind Mayu. "I'm so glad you two are back! My match hasn't started yet, so you're lucky!" Kiba scoffed.

"And what's so lucky about you getting your ass kicked?"

"Ki-Kiba-kun…!" Hinata exclaimed in a scolding voice.

"Hinata, I don't remember you possessing a weapon such as that." Shino spoke, causing Mayu to flinch. She had not known he was so close. "I also didn't know that you had that type of strength. Those things… they were heavy."

"M-My weapons…?! Where are they?"

"Kurenai-sensei has them. She said that she, herself, could barely pick them up. Do you usually caring those things around?" Kiba frowned while Akamaru barked. He was more than a little miffed that Hinata had been hiding things from Shino and himself.

Before Mayu could hear Hinata's response, she was pulled away by her two teammates. "Hey, what are you doing?!" She yanked her arms back from her male members. By now, the three were by their sensei. Mayu's back was pressed against the wall and her three team members were surrounding her.

"Is your ear okay?" Kakashi asked, ignoring her question.

"Huh…? Oh yeah, they patched it up for me." She reflexively held the healed ear.

"So you're okay," Naruto stated the obvious, causing Mayu to frown. "So are you going to tell us about that mark on your arm? When and how did you get it?" Mayu opened her mouth to respond, but Naruto did not let her finish. "I feel like you and Sasuke are keeping a secret from me and I want to know _now_." Mayu sweated nervously.

"The other matches… Can't we just wait?"

"No! Sasuke told me that you'd explain everything when you got back!"

Mayu, in turn, glared at the Uchiha. Sasuke looked away as if he didn't see the fierce look being directed at him. The kunoichi turned her attention back to the blond of her team. "Okay, Naruto, I'll tell you. You're probably the only one on this team who doesn't know about it, which is unfair to you." Mayu frowned, and then began whispering to him what had happened in the Forest of Death. This time, she did not leave out a single factor. When she finished, her chin was tilted down towards the ground. Even after all that had happened, she still felt bad about it.

Naruto stared incredulously at his teammate. He could not believe some of the things she had told him. _"That thing on her arm…"_ He stared at the ground with narrowed eyes. _"I knew that guy was creepy, but… biting genin…"_

"Gomennasai… I didn't mean to keep it from you for so long." Mayu moved her fingers around nervously.

"You don't have to feel bad about what happened, Sakura-chan." Mayu looked up in surprise. "I'm sure that we all would have taken a hit for each other. And it was obviously that mark that caused you to do that to that guy…" Naruto grinned at his fellow ninja. "Sakura-chan would never do that on purpose, not to anybody!"

"Naruto…" Mayu smiled. "If you were someone else I would kiss you!" The blond flushed with slight embarrassment. Sasuke flushed in a completely different emotion. He didn't know why his teammate was so quick to make a complete fool of herself in front of strangers by hugging, kissing, or pushing her own teammates out of the way. Sasuke scowled. He was still a little pissed about getting shoved away when he was trying to introduce himself to that Sand kid. "So now that that's resolved, who's fighting right now?"

"I declare the fourth match of the preliminaries over." Hayate's voice resounded all throughout the room. The genin of Team 7 stood erect, and then moved over to the railing.

"Fourth…?! I can't believe I missed two whole fights!" Mayu looked down at the area. She saw Ino and that Sound ninja, Dosu. Ino's body was on the ground, limp. Dosu's body was straight up; his arm was also up in defeat. She also noticed that Ino's bleach blond hair was on the floor. It seemed to make a path from her body to Dosu's. _"I can guess what happened in their match."_ Mayu frowned. _"So it's another thing that changed."_

"Due to the forfeit of Kinuta Dosu, the winner of this match is Yamanaka Ino!" Hayate announced raising his arm in Ino's favor. But it was Dosu who cheered and held up a victory sign. Mayu made a flat expression. Those who didn't know where Ino resided were just idiots.

"Release…!" Dosu's muffled voiced said. A few seconds later, Ino stood up with a grin on her face. Dosu, after looking a bit confused, focused a glare on Ino. But it was all in vain. The match was over, the blond girl had won. And it was all because he fell for her trick.

"GOOD JOB, INO-CHAN…!" Mayu shouted down to the blond kunoichi, causing the girl to turn. Ino smiled, but then frowned. She dashed towards the stairs as Dosu, begrudgingly went towards the opposite staircase. Mayu greeted Ino with a thumb up, but Ino greeted her with a headlock. "_Aaahh_…! What the hell, Ino?!" Those around the two girls sweated with flat expressions.

"What do you mean 'What the hell, Ino?!'? Who do you think you're talking to?!" Ino tightened her hold around Mayu's neck, causing her to make gagging noises. "When did you learn a Mind Transfer technique?!" The only answer the girl received was choked out nonsense. Ino sighed, and then released Mayu. She fell to the floor gasping for as much as possible. "Well…?"

"Sas-Sasuke's the one who showed me those hand signs! Strangle the life outta him, not me!" Mayu pointed a finger at her teammate. Ino looked towards the dark-haired genin, and then shrugged.

"I would never do that to Sasuke-kun!" Ino crossed her arms and looked away as if the very suggestion was beneath her. Mayu glowered at the proud kunoichi. She glanced up at the cut ponytail. Mayu stood.

"Ino-chan… you cut your hair…?" She stated the obvious. Of course she knew that Ino cut her hair. It's what happened in the original plot in her fight against the real Haruno Sakura. Mayu had no idea that it was going to happen this time around. Ino made a '_humph_' noise, and then smirked. She pulled the hair band out, causing her blond locks to fall. They cascaded around her head. It ended at the base of her neck.

"I'm kunoichi now! Like I need something as trivial as long hair!" Ino proudly declared. Mayu smiled and mentally gave herself a pat on the back. It was an excellent change of subject, after all. Ino was now laughing haughtily as if she owned the world. The blond girl turned her attention to Sasuke, causing the boy to flinch. She grabbed his hand. Her touch made his skin crawl with goose bumps. Ino did not seem to notice. Mayu laughed at Sasuke predicament. "Gomen, Sasuke-kun… I know that you liked me with long hair, but alas… I no longer have that. Feel free to stare at me, anyway!" And with that, Ino skipped away towards her team, waving goodbye as she made her way.

"I… should not have kissed her…" Sasuke looked a bit violated.

"Yeah, you shouldn't have!" Mayu giggled. "Now she won't stop pestering you!"

"You're the one who made me do it!"

"Details, shmetails!" Mayu waved off his pointed finger.

The computer, randomizing names, made noises that attracted everyone. They looked to see who were going to be in the next match up. Mayu bit her lip in anticipation. Okay, it might've been totally different thus far, such as _Sakura_ and Ino winning their matches, but maybe—just maybe—everything would be okay from here on out. _"The fifth match should be Temari and Tenten!" _Mayu gave a silent prayer, hoping those were the results that the computer would give. The names suddenly stopped flashing. Mayu slowly lifted her head to see the outcome.

**Tenten**

**VS.**

**Temari**

Mayu released a breath she had not known she was holding. "For the fifth match," Hayate began as the two kunoichi made their way down to the battle arena. He waited until both girls were in front of him before continuing. "Tenten and Temari… Get ready…" The man coughed as the girls stepped closer to each other. The weapon master smirked as she continued to stare down her opponent.

_"After seeing the last kunoichi match, I am so pumped up about mine!"_ She never lost her smirk even when Temari raised one of her eyebrows. The Sand kunoichi wondered why the girl was looking that way. She put her hand on her hip as she looked at the Leaf kunoichi.

"Another ninja from the Sand village…" Hyuga Neji looked down at the sandy blond-haired girl as Lee cheered Tenten on even though the match hadn't started yet. The girl seemed to be the same age as himself and his teammates, perhaps even older. And that look on her face told him that she wasn't just another immature genin. "This should prove to be an interesting match."

Mayu, overhearing the Hyuga's words, frowned lightly. _"Not as interesting as you think,"_ she thought. _"Temari's probably the worst Tenten could have as an opponent."_ For awhile nothing happened. It was just a whole lot of staring. "HEY! CAN WE GET THIS MATCH GOING ALREADY?!" The silence was broken by Mayu's loud voice. Because of her sudden outburst, most of the genin flinched, not expecting something like that. One genin who did not flinch was Uchiha Sasuke. He already knew how to handle this current situation.

_WHAP_

"Shut up, cocoon girl!"

Groans of pain were now ignored as everyone went back to staring down at the two kunoichi, who were ready for their battle to begin. "Start…!" Hayate exclaimed. Neither kunoichi moved from their position. They, instead, decided to keep staring at each other. Both were wondering what type of attacks the others would use. Temari suddenly smirked. Tenten, sensing something wrong with this action, jumped back a few feet.

"Alright, Tenten…! Keep her guessing!" Lee cheered his teammate on. The cheering quickly got louder thanks to Gai's cheering. Naruto clamped both hands on his ears. He glowered at the Green Beasts of Konoha.

"_Great, right next to the cheering section!"_ he thought, sarcastically. His other teammates chose to ignore their shouts of glee and excitement.

_"I wonder what would happen if Temari and Ino fought instead…" _Mayu took a glance at the laziest ninja in the room. She grinned when she saw him yawning, seemingly not caring about the fight. A snicker escaped her mouth as she continued to ponder over which girl Shikamaru would cheer for. But considering his laziness, he would probably think it too troublesome to cheer for either one of them. Sasuke decided not to question his teammate's sudden fit of giggles.

"What are you waiting for?" Hayate looked at both girls as he spoke. "I did say to be start." It was clarification. He guessed that since he had coughed a couple times during his one word sentence that they had not heard him.

"_Ha_…! I'm guessing she's waiting on me to make the first move." Temari's voice sounded as if she were superior to Tenten. She had a mocking tone of voice. "That's a big mistake. The first move I make will be the last one you see." The Sand kunoichi took a step forward, causing Tenten to take a step back. Temari took another step. "Come on… I don't want our match to be over too quickly, so why don't you go first?" She arrogantly thumbed her chest as if she made herself vulnerable on purpose. "Show me what you got, girl."

"Okay… but you asked for it!" Tenten jumped up and threw four shuriken at the Sand kunoichi. Temari looked up at the sharp weapons, yet didn't move. Her body seemed to blur for a split second. The shuriken embedded into the floor beside Temari, and yet the teen didn't seem to move from her position. Tenten landed on the floor. "I missed…?!" Her incredulous tone gave away her surprise and bewilderment. "There's just no way!"

"What was that? A warm up…?" Temari haughtily asked, hands on her hips. "Or maybe you're a little nervous and it has affected you aim, is that it…?" Tenten almost growled. The Sand kunoichi was mocking her. "Darn… I thought I'd at least work up a sweat, but if that's all you have to offer, then forget that idea." Temari smirked at the glare the Leaf kunoichi was giving her.

"What is going on down there? How could Tenten have missed?!" He clutched the railing. He could not believe that his teammate actually missed. It did not make sense in his eyes. After all, Tenten was an expert when it came to hitting a target. The kunoichi never missed. Gai stated this. He, too, was perplexed at how his student could possibly miss.

"Man, this is embarrassing…" Shikamaru stared down at the arena floor. Though, his words did not sound very embarrassed. "Another win for the Sand village." Naruto looked over to him, confused.

"What are you talking about? The match just started!" The blond protested. Was Shikamaru trying to be like Neji and determine the fight's outcome? That pissed him off! The lazy ninja gave an annoyed sigh before telling Naruto that it was obvious. "Gimmie a break! What makes you so smart?! Why don't you explain it to me so I can understand?" Shikamaru gave another sigh and muttered 'troublesome' under his breath as he looked back down at the fight. "Hey…! I said-"

Two hands clamped down on his hand. Naruto groaned, and then turned to his two teammates. "I know you're an idiot, Naruto, so explaining would be futile." Sasuke turned his head towards the match. "So why don't you just wait and find out?" The blond grumbled, and then shook the Uchiha's hands from his hand.

"Yeah, the best thing, for someone like you to do, is watch and learn." Mayu agreed, nodding her head. Naruto grumbled a bit more before focusing on the match below. Did everyone get it but him?

Down below, Tenten stared apprehensively at her opponent. She didn't understand how she missed, but the fact was making her slightly fearful of the sandy blond-haired girl. _"Calm down…" _she told herself. _"Do not let her get to you."_ She mentally counted the tiles coming from Temari to herself. Tenten narrowed her eyes. _"I couldn't have missed…! She must've dodged them somehow, but if I try a different approach…"_

Temari laughed mentally as she watched Tenten's brown eyes dart from her to the floor. She couldn't stop the smirk from spreading on her face. _"Look at her counting the distance! Here comes her big move…" _Temari reached back. Her hand touched the end of her fan. Tenten looked momentarily surprised, but then held a smirk of her own.

"_So that's her secret…!"_ The girl dashed over to the side and circled around the Sand kunoichi. Temari's teal eyes never left the Leaf kunoichi's body. "Alright…! Try this!"

Tenten jumped up and pulled out a scroll. The spinning of her body caused the unwrapped scroll to twirl around her. Faster and faster it went until Tenten's body was no longer visible to the naked eye. Several weapons suddenly had come flying from the 'ball' that was levitating in mid air. _"How does she stay up there that long…?"_ Mayu gave a look of disbelief towards the ball. The sharp weapons hurdled towards the Sand kunoichi, and yet she still did not move. Sasuke's Sharingan-activated eyes grew wide.

"_She fast…" _he thought, narrowing his eyes. _"This match really is over."_ He turned off his doujutsu. _"That girl can't possible win."_

The weapons abruptly dropped down to the floor as if they had been knocked off course. Tenten dropped down seconds later. She blinked as if her own eyes deceived her. Everything that was thrown her way had been stopped by some type of unseen force. There was not one scratch on the blond, but there was a grin on her face. Also, her fan was open slightly. One purple circle was visible on the thin, cloth-like paper. Temari laughed a mocking laugh, causing Tenten to glare. "Take a look," she said. "This is the first moon. There are two left to see. Once you see all three… that's when you know that this match is over and you've lost."

Tenten started sweating. It ran down her face like melted ice cream. This match was proving to be difficult for her. She heard her teammate, Lee, calling out to her, trying to get her to 'maintain focus.' Didn't he think she already knew that? _"My only shot seems to be that tactic, but I can't use that, not yet…" _The Leaf kunoichi frowned. _"Okay… I'll use that instead."_

"Come on, girl, don't keep me waiting." Temari's taunting voice called.

Tenten smirked, and then pulled out two scrolls. Lee and Gai seemed perplexed at the sudden revealing of her two scrolls. "Hey, what's she going to do with those?" Naruto asked, voice filling with curiosity. His question went unanswered as everyone else focused on what Tenten was doing. She set up the two scrolls on the floor. They were adjacent to each other. Temari laughed out right.

"It won't work… whatever it is." The overconfident grin on her face was ignored by the Leaf kunoichi as she dropped to her knee. She began to form hand signs. The weapon's master glared at Temari one last time. It was time for the Sand kunoichi to be put in her place.

"**Rising Twin Dragons**!"

A giant cloud of smoke appeared out of nowhere. This acted as a smokescreen which hid the entire arena floor. _"A summon…?!"_ Sasuke stared skeptically down, trying to see through the smoke. He didn't think any genin could perform a summoning. Two thin beams of smoke shot up. The two beams were shaped like dragons and they twisted around one another. Suddenly, the two dragon-shaped clouds transformed into the two unwrapped scrolls. Tenten jumped up in the middle of the twisting scrolls, gathering chakra in her feet so that she would go higher. Dozens of pointy objects were summoned all at once and they headed straight for Temari.

The Sand kunoichi merely scoffed before readying her weapon of choice. "It doesn't matter how many you throw." She smirked. "The result will be the same." Her fan opened again, revealing another purple circle. She swiped at the weapons with her fan. The gust of wind that came forth blew all of the weapons away, nullifying the attack. The weapons, the scrolls, and Tenten fell to the floor—in that order.

"I'm not done yet!" Her teeth were clenched together in frustration. Determined, the girl jumped up. She moved her fingers and the weapons on the ground twitched. She pushed her arms to her side and the weapons were now suspended in mid air. It was wire. Wire was tied to the girl's fingers and attached to the weapons down below. Tenten thrust her hands forward, causing the weapons to lunge towards Temari. The Sand kunoichi looked shocked and this is what caused Tenten to smirk. She had thought she had caught her off guard. Temari grinned, and then sent a powerful gust of wind. This wind blew away the weapons, as well as Tenten. The girl was knocked to the ground.

The weapon's master sat up, glaring. The blond was holding her fan in a way so that three purple circles were showing. "Moon three…" she said just as Tenten stood. Temari suddenly vanished in behind her fan. Soon after, the fan also disappeared. Tenten stared at the spot where the girl used to be. She looked around anxiously, almost fearfully.

_"She disappeared…! Where is she? Where'd she go?"_ Tenten's brown eyes frantically searched for the missing Sand kunoichi. Her unspoken questions were soon answered by the sarcastic voice of Temari. Tenten turned around. _"Above…?!"_ There Temari was on her fan… in mid air. She was flying right over Tenten.

"Whoa…! That's freaking awesome!" Mayu stared wide-eyed. Several Leaf genin stared at her, including Lee.

"Sakura-san…!"

"No, no, no! I will not feel ashamed that I said that! I know I'm supposed to be rooting for the home team and all, but… when you're badass, you're badass and I'm gonna say it!" Mayu clutched the railing in sheer excitement as she stared down at the fight. A grin spread across her face. Her green eyes seem to light up. "She's _flying_! No one else can top that! That's so badass…!"

Temari hopped down from her fan. The fan was returned to her hand. The Sand kunoichi smirked. That little thing she just did was usually done as an intimidation tactic. It wasn't offensive or defensive and it was rarely used in any of her fights. _"But hey…! A compliment's a compliment_." Temari looked as Tenten as if she'd already won. She readied her fan for her final attack. "**Wind Scythe Jutsu**!" Instead of sending just one gust of wind, she sent many. Those winds seemed to gobble Tenten right up.

The weapon's master was surrounded by a vortex of hard winds and chakra. It cut her clothes and her skin, causing her to bleed. The girl tried to scream, but no sound came out of her mouth. Or perhaps it did… The wind was too strong to hear anything caught in its mouth. "Temari's chakra is controlling the tornado…" Neji looked up. He didn't have to have his Byakugan activated to tell that much. "She fought well, but… she'll never escape from that whirlwind."

The windstorm finally subsided, causing Tenten to descend. She landed right on Temari's metal fan. Her body was bent in an unnatural way. Blood shot out of her open mouth. The pain was too much for Tenten, and so she fell unconscious, thus ending the one-sided battle. "Whoa… That girl is really ruthless." Naruto looked shocked. He wasn't sure he if even he would want to fight her.

"Wasn't much of a match," Temari muttered, looking dispassionately at Tenten's form. "Kinda boring, really."

"Well, Naruto… What do you think? Do you realize why the match was decided when Tenten first made a move?" Mayu asked her teammate. Naruto slowly nodded his head.

"Her power over the wind made it so that Tenten's weapons couldn't reach her, right?" Mayu and Sasuke nodded.

"It also looks like… those wind techniques could act as her attack as well as her defense." Sasuke added to the analysis. "She's potentially an invincible opponent." Naruto and Mayu both nodded in agreement.

Kakashi watched this interaction in mild surprise. It was somewhat shocking to see his students actually talking about other's fighting style. They were actually coming up with ways to bypass the strengths of Temari's attack. Kakashi could also hear them discussing a weak point, but they didn't sound too sure. They were also conversing about Tenten's abilities, though she had lost the match. Were the three going to do this for each match that they saw? Kakashi's visible eye curved upward. _"What a team…" _he thought.

"Weight training…? Is that _really_ necessary?" Naruto groaned.

"Well, if you don't want to be hit with sharp pointy objects!" Mayu muttered. "But we can do that type of training later. I don't think we have to worry about fighting our own comrade after this… at least until the next exam, that is."

"What I really think we should do is work on ninjutsu and taijutsu once this is over." Sasuke suggested. "Naruto, your taijutsu is lacking. And even though you've got your shadow clones, that jutsu will only get you so far. You, too, Sakura. You may have mastered the Grand Fireball Jutsu, but it doesn't hurt to learn something else. And working on taijutsu would increase my stamina, so it works for all of us." Naruto and Mayu nodded. "Also, we should try to learn some of each other's abilities. I saw how well you did with your fight with Hinata when you used something from me and Naruto." The blond grinned widely as he nodded.

"Yeah, once the chuunin exam is over, we should follow Sasuke's plan. Along the way, we might have to add something to it, though." Mayu grinned. "I can hardly wait."

"Yeah, I-"

The computer began to randomize names again, interrupting what Naruto was going to say. "Yes! Let it be me! Let it be me!" The blond, instead, chanted. Sasuke sighed wearily and muttered a 'dope' of his breath. Mayu only giggled.

"Whatever ever happened to saving the best for last?"

"…" Naruto had to think about it for a moment. "Don't let it be me! Don't let it be me!" He changed his chant up a bit. Sasuke only shook his head. The computer buzzed, signifying the next match of the preliminaries.

**Nara Shikamaru**

**VS.**

**Tsuchi Kin**

Naruto looked happy with the results, but his teammates could tell that he was slightly disappointed as well. It was probably from the way he crossed his arms. Chouji and Ino began cheering as Shikamaru finally made his way down to the arena floor. _"Shika's got this one in the bag! This was my third favorite match during the preliminaries." _Mayu smirked. _"That Kin girl doesn't stand a chance against a genius like him. There's not even a point to watching this one since it ends so quickly."_ Mayu looked over to Kakashi, who was currently looking down at Shikamaru. "Kakashi-sensei…!" The copy ninja turned to his student. "I need to go to the bathroom!" she whispered. But since the girl couldn't whisper all that well, nearly everyone around heard her. Kakashi could literally feel the sticky sweat drop gliding down the back of his head as he told the kunoichi the directions to the restroom. Sasuke almost rolled his eyes.

"_That girl…"_

* * *

"So what I miss?" Mayu stepped towards her team. Naruto was the one who looked over and answered her.

"Shikamaru totally beat her. I'm actually surprised that that lazy bum won!" The blond grinned. Sasuke snorted as he looked down at the girl's unconscious form. Her battle tactics were so lame. Her moves her hesitant, almost as if she was scared. Her team must be embarrassed beyond normal. Kin was like a completely different fighter from when she had attacked him in the Forest of Death. It was embarrassing for him to have been almost beaten by their team. Zaku was out, Dosu was out, and now the last, Kin, was out. They were all defeated by average-rated genin, in his opinion, anyway.

"That match lasted two seconds. That was the most unexciting battle I've ever seen." The Uchiha crossed his arms as he watched Kin being taken away.

"I'm sure it wasn't over that quickly."

"It was over pretty fast, though!" Naruto agreed with Sasuke.

"Well, I'm guessing that since it was Shikamaru, he probably wanted to end as quickly as possible," Mayu mused. "That sure does sound like that lazy guy."

"Thanks for the compliments…" A semi-annoyed Shikamaru walked pass Team 7.

Mayu only snickered. _"Okay, so who's left? I know that Naruto and Sasuke haven't fought yet. Lee-kun, Kiba, Neji, Panda-chan, Chouji, and that purple-wearing ninja haven't fought yet either. And I think the next one is the seventh match." _Mayu scratched her head. _"I can't remember who's supposed to fight next, though…" _The randomizing of names soon began. _"Oh, well… I guess I'm about to find out."_ The computer buzzed again. The names of the two participates were revealed.

**Uzumaki Naruto**

**VS.**

**Inuzuka Kiba**

Mayu didn't even at to look at the screen to see that her teammate was in the next match. The way he hooped and hollered indicated that much. Lee sighed in disappointment. "I am going to die of old age before it is my turn!" He posture slackened. "I only want to show Sakura-san what I am made of… She is going to get tired of waiting at this rate. Why am I being denied my wish…?!" Mayu giggled lightly, causing Lee to blush. Sasuke merely shook his head, and Naruto continued to cheer for himself.

"I'd wish you luck, but you wouldn't need it because you're Uzumaki Naruto! You're so gonna win this!" Mayu slapped Naruto on the back. The blond didn't even react to the hit. He was too busy gleefully laughing.

"You know it, Sakura-chan…!"

"What the hell are you waiting for then? Get your ass down there, you're pissing me off!" Sasuke slapped his teammates back, but this hit caused Naruto to go over the metal railing.

"Sasuke…!" Mayu scolded, but it was ignored by the Uchiha.

_"Let's see how much stronger you really got, Naruto."_ Sasuke narrowed his eyes at the blond, who was picking himself off the floor, rubbing his now sore bottom. Naruto glared up at his teammate before focusing his attention on Kiba.

"Now the seventh match…" Hayate spoke, and then looked at both fighters. "Uzumaki Naruto and Inuzuka Kiba…"

"I've been waiting forever for this!" Naruto grinned. "Sorry, Kiba…! Don't take it personally if I wipe the floor with you!" The Inuzuka looked utterly pissed. He pointed an angry finger at his blond opponent.

"That's just what I was gonna say!" It almost sounded as if Kiba was accusing Naruto of treason. "… Only not so politely!" The blond felt suddenly angered when the dog, Akamaru barked in agreement.

Sasuke sighed heavily as the two fighters began to bicker back and forth amongst each other. "It's like a version of Naruto himself…" He almost rolled his eyes. "Both of them are morons… This match could go on like this for ages!" Mayu had to agree with Sasuke on that one. She did always think that Kiba was similar to her blond teammate.

"COME ON, NARUTO! THE TIME FOR USELESS BANTER IS OVER!" Mayu clutched the railing. "DON'T FORGET ANYTHING I TOLD YOU AND TAKE THAT BITCH DOWN!" The girl received a few shock stares, a glare, and a thumb up in confirmation. The thumb up was from Naruto. The glare was from Kiba. And the shocked stares were from various genin.

"_They're a couple of idiots…"_ Sasuke produced a flat expression. _"I wonder what she 'told' him, though…"_

"When you're ready, you can begin," Hayate told the two boys. Kiba looked back towards Naruto, and then grinned. The dog boy squatted down and held up a hand sign. He thought that he should take care of Naruto right away. If he started strong, he believed that Naruto wouldn't stand a chance.

_"_**Ninja Art of Beast Mimicry**_…"_ Kiba grinned, thinking the fight was already over. _"_**All Fours Jutsu**!_"_ The Inuzuka placed his hands on the ground. His nails had grown into claws and his teeth enlarged into fangs. "Here I come." Kiba ran at Naruto with intense speed. Naruto didn't even have time to gasp in shock before the dog-user's elbow made contact with his abdomen. The initial hit caused the blond to fly back. He did not get back up. Kiba stood up straight with a grin on his face. "He's gonna be out for awhile." He proudly looked towards Hayate. "You can call the match now."

Nearly everyone looked down at the field either in embarrassment, smugness, or disappointment. Kiba smirked and turned his back on the seemingly unconscious blond. Some said they knew that Kiba was just too much for the blond to handle. They believed that Uzumaki Naruto was weak. They were wrong… Smirks appeared on the faces of the two genin of Team 7.

Naruto suddenly sat up, surprising everyone in the room, including Kiba. He turned around, mouth open as if he couldn't believe that his opponent had gotten up after that one strike. He stood, although slowly, and grinned. Blood ran down his chin, but that was ignored. "Don't you ever—_ever_ underestimate me…!" Several intakes of breaths filled Naruto's ears, causing his grin to grow. Soon after, Lee could be heard cheering. As the underdog, he felt as if he connected with Naruto. "That hit… I've felt worse from a cat scratching me! That was lame as all get out! Maybe you should actually use that little doggie of yours?"

Each word Naruto spoke made Kiba get pissed. He was openly insulting him as if his attack did nothing. It did do something! Naruto was bleeding and he was sure he heard something crack when his elbow hit its mark. The Inuzuka bared his sharp fangs. This little punk was definitely going to pay for his insolence. "Come on, Akamaru!" The puppy barked. Both boy and beast dashed towards Naruto. Kiba pulled a pair of balls out of his pouch. Naruto recognized the two balls almost instantly.

He quickly dug around in his pouch and pulled out a vial. The small glass bottle contained a dark, yellowish liquid. Kiba, so caught up in throwing his smoke grenades, didn't notice Naruto's actions. The two bombs blew up near Naruto's feet. The blond was surrounded by purple smoke. He could not see through the thick smoke, neither could anyone else. Kiba wasted no time in going into the smoke field. He knew where Naruto was and attacked. The blond grunted with each blow he received from the dog-user. He rubbed at his chin, smearing the blood. "I've got to get outta here!" He randomly chose a direction to run in.

Just as he seemed to break free from the area of smoke, Akamaru lunged at him and pushed him back into the smoke field. The small white puppy had driven his fangs deep into Naruto's arm. "Son of a bitch…!" The blond grimaced as he yanked Akamaru away from arm. His sleeve was now soaked with blood. He slammed his palm against the dog's nose, and then slammed him to the ground. Akamaru's body twitched, but did not get up again. The dog was alive but incapacitated at the moment. Naruto smirked. _"Now to get the owner…"_

Outside of the area of smoke, Kiba waited until the veil dispersed. He smirked when Naruto and Akamaru were revealed. The former lied on the floor, looking quite battered. The latter, though, seemed to be grinning as he wagged his tail. "Way to go, Akamaru! This fight is done!" The dog began running towards his partner. Kiba held his arms out, ready for his dog to jump into his arms. "Nice job, Aka-"

_POOF_

"Take this…!" Naruto twisted in mid air. The heel of his foot connected with Kiba's jaw. The surprise of the attack—not to mention the force—caused Kiba's stance to falter. He staggered back as Naruto's feet touched the ground. While the dog-user was distracted, the blond gave a swift upper-cut to his opponent. It literally picked Kiba off the ground. Naruto didn't stop his attack after that, though. He punched the Inuzuka in the chest several times, causing him to double over. His lungs felt like they were going to explode at any second! Lastly, Naruto bent his body backwards, so his palms touched the floor. His legs came up and wrapped around Kiba's neck. The blond swung his lower body up and over. Kiba's face smashed hard against the floor.

A few seconds later, Naruto released his captive and flipped away from him. Kiba's legs promptly fell to the floor. The Inuzuka did not move. Blood pooled around his head. It came from his, most likely, broken nose. The genin from the Leaf all stared in amazement. They had no idea that Naruto could follow through with an attack like that! He was definitely not the loser that they used to know back in the Academy. _"Naruto…"_ Even though Sasuke knew of his teammate's growth in strength, he couldn't fathom that the blond had did something like that. His taijutsu had improved. Before, Naruto was just another brawler. His fighting tactics were similar to an untrained kid at times. But this—this was simply astounding. His dark eyes glanced at his female teammate. Mayu has been teaching him things, he thought. He narrowed his eyes at he continued to watch her. Not once had she offered to tell him anything that might help him. Why had she held out on him and not Naruto?

The blond panted heavily as he stared at Kiba's unmoving form. His blue eyes darted over to Akamaru. His small white body was still lying there, motionless. One of Naruto's clones had hidden Akamaru's body. The Inuzuka user looked at the clone and assumed that it was the real Naruto. That clone had also acted as a shield. Kiba suddenly twitched, drawing Naruto's blue eyes back to him. His fingers moved awkwardly until his palms were flat on the floor. He slowly stood up, struggling all the way. Naruto's eyes grew wide. It wasn't just Kiba's nose that was bleeding. His lip was also split open. And from the way Kiba bared his teeth, he could tell that he was missing a couple of those teeth.

He grimaced at the sight.

"This… isn't… over… yet!" The Inuzuka was breathing heavily. And why wouldn't he be? Those punches to the chest weren't for nothing, after all. Take your enemy's breath away and you gain the upper hand, he remembered. "Where's… Aka… maru…?!"

"He's right beside you." Naruto pointed to the dog. Kiba's eyes frantically darted over to his battle partner. "But I guess you couldn't sniff him out because your senses are filled with blood.

"What the hell did you do to him?!"

"I paralyzed his body. He won't be moving for awhile. You should give up while you're still conscious, Kiba."

"When did Naruto paralyze Akamaru, and how did he do it?" Ino's tone was doubtful.

"He probably did it when no one could see him." Her smart teammate was the one who answered. "How, though, I'm not sure."

"I made him sniffed this incredibly nasty smelling stuff I found in the forest!" Naruto shrugged, but grin as he explained. "I was just going to use it for another prank, but who knew that I be up against a dog? Hahaha…" Kiba didn't find anything funny at the moment.

"You bastard…! I was going easy on you in the beginning, but now you're mine!" The Inuzuka charged at Naruto, and then spun his body around. His spin had picked up spin. One would think Kiba had transformed into a giant drill. That drill headed straight for Naruto. "**Piercing Fang**!"

"**Shadow Clone Jutsu**!" Five clones appeared in front of the blond. The real Naruto rolled to the side as his clones were barreled through by Kiba's attack. Luckily, the clones had slowed the Inuzuka down or he would have been toast.

Kiba slid to a stop a few yards from where Naruto landed. _"Even without Akamaru to help me, I'm still faster and stronger than him!" _He smirked. _"I can still defeat this guy! I'll just use the All Fours Jutsu. I think my body's too weak to attempt the Piercing Fang again."_ The dog-user rushed at the blond again, attacking from all sides. As he attacked, he couldn't help but to taught him. Saying things like how he was going to become Hokage instead. He even laughed about it.

Naruto almost growled. It wasn't very threatening seeing as how he was on the ground. "How dare he mock my dream…?!" The blond pushed himself off the floor. "I won't lose to you!"

"Dream on, kid! You're definitely going to lose! You can't even keep up with me!" Kiba charged at Naruto once again. This time, however, the blond ran towards him as well. Mere inches away from one another, Naruto thrust his hand forward. His palm smacked against Kiba's nose and mouth causing him to fall back. "_Ahhh_! Nasty! What the hell is that taste!"

"The stuff I found in the forest." Naruto laughed at his good fortune. "Lucky I still had some still on my hand. Since you're like a dog with your senses, I'm guessing you'll be paralyzed from that in a few seconds."

Kiba glowered. _"I can still move… If I can just take him down before my body freezes up_!" The Inuzuka ran towards Naruto again.

"_If that's the way you want it…"_ thought Naruto. Kiba was quickly closing in on the blond. Naruto swiftly dropped to the ground. Kiba's eyes widen at his sudden 'disappearance.' A foot, out of nowhere, made contact with his chin, kicking the dog-user up high. On all fours, Naruto jumped up after him.

"_Wait a minute…! That's…!"_ Green eyes widen at the sight of Naruto behind Kiba's body.

The blond wrapped his fingers around Kiba's hood, and then forced his body to descend. On the way down, the two seem to orbit around each other. "**Uzumaki's**…" With one final turn, Naruto made Kiba's body crash on the floor. "**Seismic Body Toss**!" The orange-clad ninja flipped away from the motionless body belonging to Inuzuka Kiba. Everyone stared, mouths agape.

"_That move…!"_ Sasuke tried to close his mouth, but it stayed open. He was that shocked. _"That move was similar to the on Lee used on me! How did he…?"_ Lee was also stunned speechless, as well as his sensei.

Naruto panted heavily. He stared at Kiba as if the boy was going to get up and start taunting him again. After of few moments of not moving, Hayate finally came over to check the body. He looked up at Naruto. He, too, was mildly surprised. He coughed a few times before speaking. "It's over… The match goes to Uzumaki Naruto."

_"This is completely screwed up!" _Mayu frowned, but then grinned. Oh well, she thought. "HELL YEAH, NARUTO! THAT'S WHAT I'M TALKING 'BOUT!" Sasuke, although still stunned, let a smirk spread across his face.

"_He has gotten stronger."_

Naruto ran up the stairs with renewed vigor. "That was nothing! It was a piece of cake for me!" He laughed as he walked towards his team. A quiet voice stopped him. He turned around to see Hinata looking meekly at him. "Hinata…?" The Hyuga fiddled with her fingers. Some type of container was in her hands.

"Con-Congratulations on winning, Na-Naru—Naruto-kun…!" Hinata stammered out, nervously. A slight blush adorned her face. She took hesitant steps over to the blond. "I-I-I… Here—it's some—something for your injuries…" She held up the container to him. "A-A-A healing ointment…"

Naruto blinked a moment in confusion, and then grinned like a fox. Hinata's blush intensified. The blond took the ointment from her hands. "Thanks a bunches, Hinata!" He gave her a side-ways hug. "I hope you cheered me on! Well, see ya!" He trotted off towards his team, not knowing that he had caused the Hyuga to faint. Kurenai had to catch her student before she hit the ground.

"Daaaaamn, Naruto…! That was some fight!" Mayu and the blond greeted each other with a high five. They both grinned.

"And you expected something less?" Naruto tried to scoff, but ended up laughing.

"I have to say, Naruto… I was quite impressed." Kakashi actually smiled under his mask. Naruto was practically guffawing.

"I think we should stop complimenting him. His face is going to split if he grins anymore." Sasuke smirked. "Nice job, Naruto." The blond snickered; a pink tint colored his cheeks. "But my fight is sure to be better." Naruto lost his grin.

"What'd you say?!" He pointed a finger.

Mayu decided to ignore her teammates for the time being. After all, they had started to squabble about who was better. Something they always did… _"That was the seventh match, so there are three more." _She counted the number of fighters left on her fingers. _"Sasuke still hasn't fought yet… Man, I really hope he doesn't get paired up with Panda-chan…"_

"Okay, we'll now pick the names for the next match!" Hayate announced, and then coughed loudly. This is what alerted Mayu's attention to the screen.

**Akimichi Chouji**

**VS.**

**Hyuga Neji**

"Hyuga Neji… That's Hinata's cousin, isn't it?" Naruto asked. Mayu nodded. "Then he's going to have the same abilities, then…"

"Chouji might not stand a chance in hell," Sasuke remarked.

"Don't say that!" Mayu scolded.

Neji and Chouji both made their way down to the arena floor. The latter was a bit hesitant, though, so it took some time for him to finally reach the male Hyuga. _"Just keep thinking about that barbeque…!" _Chouji thought to motivate himself. Neji only smirked, thinking his had this battle in the bag.

"You can do it, Chouji!" Shikamaru called.

"Yeah…! Take him down for ignoring my charms!" Ino also called out to her teammate. "FATSO…!"

Chouji's ear twitched, and then he started growling. "I'm gonna finish this match, and then I'm coming after you, Ino!" The Yamanaka only giggled.

"You honesty think you have a chance against me, fat ass?" Neji asked, smirking. "You seem to forget that you're afraid of me. We'll just have to fix that, now, won't we?" The male Hyuga dropped into his stance. Chouji turned his angry eyes to Neji. Fire seemed to actually replace his pupils.

"I'm taking you down, girly man!" His retort caused Neji's eyebrow to twitch. He activated his advanced bloodline. _"I know about his abilities, seeing as how I saw Hinata fight… If I just keep attacking, he won't be able to go on the offensive."_

"I know what you're thinking…" Neji smirked. "But let me assure you, I'm not as weak as that other Hyuga."

"What'd he say?!" Naruto shouted. "How dare you say that about Hinata?! I would so pay to see her kick your ass!"

His shouts fell on deaf ears, but the female Hyuga blushed. It sounded as though Naruto was defending her honor. She gasped lightly at the thought. "The eighth match of the preliminaries may begin when ready." Hayate looked from Neji to Chouji.

"**Ninja Art: Expansion Jutsu**!" Chouji's already plump body became a giant ball with arms, legs, and a head. He stuffed his limbs inside his clothes and began to roll, slowly, towards the smirking Hyuga. "**Human Bullet Tank**!"

_"This is way too easy."_ Neji practically walked out of the way of Chouji's balled form. The human ball followed him, but it definitely wouldn't reach him. The Hyuga strategically place himself in front of the wall. Just as he planned it, Chouji followed him. A few seconds before the Akimichi reached him, he jumped out of the way again. Chouji crashed into the wall and got stuck. Neji landed just behind his opponent as he tried to escape. The smirk had never left his face. "What a disappointment. I guess my real skill will have to wait to be revealed in the finals." The Hyuga brought his hand back, and then thrust his palm against Chouji's enlarged body. The chakra that was forced into his body caused the younger boy to twitch. His body then went limp.

The Hyuga scoffed at his apparent win, and then turned away. "This match is over." He walked away from his opponent. Hayate didn't respond. "Why aren't you calling the match? I've clearly beaten that fat buffoon!" Neji narrowed his eyes at the proctor as if he was about to challenge him. The ground started to rumble, causing spectators to gasp. All eyes were now on Chouji's trembling form. The Akimichi had finally managed to get out of the wall.

"WHAT DID YOU CALL ME?!" He rolled towards Neji, this time at a much faster speed. "I'M PLESANTLY PLUMP, GODDAMMIT!"

"_But how…?!"_ Neji quickly got into the Hyuga stance, but it was not of any use. Chouji knocked him over like a bowling pin.

"YEAH! THAT'S MY TEAMMATE!" Ino cheered, punching the air with her fist. "KICK HIS ASS, CHOUJI!"

The Akimichi turned to attack the Hyuga again. Neji was forced to dodge the human ball again and again. "How is he so much faster?! And why did the Gentle Fist not work on him?!" The Hyuga rolled out of the way of another attack, just narrowly gracing his leg.

"Well, that's weird." Mayu blinked. Her two teammates looked at her in question. "I'm not saying Chouji's weak or anything, but… Neji's attack should have knocked him out. After all, I really think that Neji didn't want to fight Chouji, so he wanted to finish it quickly." Mayu narrowed his eyes. "And after the hit, Chouji seemed to get faster. Don't you find that weird?" Naruto shrugged and Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "Go get Hinata-chan, Naruto."

"But why?"

"Cuz I said so, damn it!"

Naruto quickly rushed off.

He came back a few seconds later, dragging the Hyuga female behind him. She was blushing mad. Uzumaki Naruto was holding her hand, after all. Hinata had to smother her body's defense system, which involve fainting. "Okay, okay! I brought her!" The blond grumbled. He absolutely hated when his teammate's heated glares were aimed at him. Those glares were usually for Sasuke, not him.

"Hinata-chan, can you watch the fight with your Byakugan turned on?" Mayu turned her attention to the Hyuga female. She blinked, but then nodded. "I need you to watch closely the next time Neji tries to attack with the Gentle Fist again." Hinata nodded again in affirmation.

Down below, Neji had decided to stop running. He clenched his teeth. How embarrassing it was to run away in front of people, he thought. He dropped down into an offensive Hyuga stance. Chouji came closer and closer to the Hyuga, and yet he did not waver. Neji slammed both hands against Chouji's form. The initial hit pushed the Akimichi a few inches back. Neji continued to push against Chouji's body, forcing more chakra into the body. Finally, the Akimichi was pushed back. He rolled away from Neji towards the opposite wall. Chouji, once again, crashed.

Neji dropped his arms and smirked. "That definitely took him out." He crossed his arms as he stared at the damaged that had occurred. "You see that? My superior genius allowed me to win. You were fated to be defeated by me from the moment we started. I do not know why you didn't receive damage from my first hit, but now… it's over."

"It… It can't be…" Hinata sounded completely surprised.

"What is it, Hinata-chan?" The Hyuga turned her head to her friend and sparring partner.

"He is carrying out the Gentle Fist effectively, but… the chakra that goes into Chouji-san's body is—it becomes scattered. The chakra isn't hitting their target!" Hinata almost sounded anxious.

"…!" Mayu looked back towards the match. Neji looked utterly baffled at the fact that Chouji had dislodged himself from the wall again.

"I'm sorry… Was that supposed to hurt?" Chouji asked with a grin. The male Hyuga growled.

"Why aren't my attacks doing anything to this fat moron…?!" The Akimichi breathed out of his nose in anger. He almost looked like a rapid bull. He then pulled out many kunai, which was on strings. Mayu blinked.

"Chouji's gonna win."

"What?!" Sasuke stared at his teammate as if she had lost half of her mind.

"I do not mean to be rude, Sakura-san, but what makes you so sure?" Lee inquired.

"Normally, the Gentle Fist is used to wear down the inside of the body, right?" Several heads nodded. "But Hinata-chan just told us that the chakra being forced inside Chouji's body to do damage is being scattered, instead. More than likely, Neji is only speeding up Chouji's chakra flow—each time he hits him, it's only giving Chouji more power and speed."

"But that can not be true! Neji would not make a mistake like that!" Lee protested.

"He's not doing it on purpose, Lee." Mayu stared at the battle. Chouji wrapped the string of kunai around his body.

"**Ninja Art: Expansion Jutsu**!" His body once again became a human ball. "**Spiked Human Bullet Tank**!" He rolled towards Neji at an incredible speed. He had become so fast—too fast. The Hyuga realized that he would not—could not dodge the oncoming ball of flesh and spikes.

"But how can this be?" Lee asked.

Mayu narrowed her green eyes as they watched Neji's body got mauled over by the 'pleasantly plump' Akimichi. "Simply put…" she began. Chouji had stopped rolling. He frowned when his eyes landed on the Hyuga. "Chouji is too fat for the Byakugan to work on his body. All that fat and muscle behind his skin—the chakra just couldn't squeeze through to their targets, I'm guessing." Neji shuddered violently. His body shook from the pain and the shock. Blood was everywhere. It united around his mangled body.

"The match goes to Akimichi Chouji." Hayate quickly moved to the Hyuga's side. He placed a hand on his cheek. Neji's teeth chattered and his lip quivered. "Medic…! We need a medic! He's going into shock!" Chouji's mouth dropped open. Had he really him that badly? The team of medics that had come quickly led Neji out on a stretcher.

"_WHOO_…! Nice job, Chouji!" Ino cheered. "Wow, I didn't think he would win…" she muttered. "Now all of us are going to the finals." Her blue eyes glanced over at Team 7. _"Sasuke-kun is sure to win his match, which means Sakura's team is also going to be in the finals."_ The bleach blond smirked. _"I have to get stronger—stronger than Sakura!"_

* * *

Lee's eyes lingered on Chouji as the boy walked pass. "I still do not understand how Neji, a genius, could have lost." He stared down at the floor. Did that mean his rivalry with the Hyuga was for not? The number one rookie of last year had lost to Akimichi Chouji.

"It was his arrogance. He relied on his bloodline—he relied too much on his bloodline. Thinking that he was above his opponent was his downfall." Sasuke looked a bit bored. Lee looked towards the Uchiha. "He had the same eyesight as Hinata, and yet he didn't see what he, himself, was doing." He leaned against the railing. "Those who can't think straight during battle don't deserve to become chuunin, anyway."

"Ya know… It's kinda ironic that you're saying that, Sasuke, since you used to be the same way," Mayu commented. Naruto nodded his head in agreement. The Uchiha glared at his two teammates.

"Morons, don't say that!" His dark eyes looked towards Naruto. He smirked. "And why exactly are you _still_ holding Hinata's hand, huh, dumbass?"

"Huh…?!" The blond quickly released the modest girl's hand. She blushed, but had a small frown on her face. She was slightly disappointed. "Sh-Shut up, teme…!" Feeling embarrassed, he felt the need to change the subject. "Hey, they're deciding the names of the next match!" Luckily, everyone's attention was diverted. They had cleaned the blood from the floor by this time, so it was time to get the next match started.

"Alright…! You've been picked this time, Lee, I just know it!" Gai gave his star pupil a thumb up. "Are you ready, Lee?"

"No…!" Lee turned his head away as if the question was unnecessary. Those around him had flat expressions.

"_Wasn't he just complaining that he'd never get his chance?"_ Sasuke almost rolled his eyes.

"I have been waiting so long that I do not care!" Lee declared. "I mind as well be last!" He huffed, and then crossed his arms.

"_Aww…! Lee's so cute!"_ Mayu cooed mentally. All the people in the room looked towards the screen, waiting for the next two fighters to be named.

Using his sand as transportation, Gaara disappeared from his sister's side and reappeared on the arena floor. "Don't keep me waiting," he said. Mayu almost squealed. Finally, after missing it each time—she was finally going to see the fight between her two favorite male characters!

**Gaara**

**VS.**

**Rock Lee**

"Yes! It worked like a charm!" Lee proclaimed, kicking the air, seemingly victorious. He said he knew that if he said it wasn't going to be next then he definitely was going to be next. Sasuke thought it was just some sort of messed up logic. Mayu watched Lee and his sensei talk. They were so weird when they were together. Alone they were tolerable, but together they were crazy, Sasuke thought, frowning. He had seen the look of admiration on his female teammate's face when she looked at Lee.

"_What the hell…?!"_ His eyebrow twitched.

"Now…! Go rock this fight, Lee!" Gai pointed a finger.

"Yes, sir!"

"Wait a minute, Lee!" The taijutsu user halted his movements when he heard Sakura's voice. He was just about to hop over the railing. "I wanted to say good luck, so… Good luck, Lee-kun!"

"Arigatou, Sakura-san. Your concern is much appreciated." He gave her a blinding smile and a thumb up. Mayu pulled on the older male's shoulder, and then kissed his cheek.

"Kissu…!" She pulled back with a grin. "Do your best!"

Lee _fell_ over the railing with a sloppy grin on his face. "Was that really necessary, Sakura?" Kakashi asked. Mayu only snickered. She was completely oblivious to the sour looks she was getting from her teammates.

* * *

"Leeeeeeee….!" Mayu sobbed on an annoyed Sasuke's shoulder. "Th-That match was so… great, and yet-" More sobs. "Leeeeeeeee…! No…!"

"Would you stop it already…?!" Sasuke finally pushed her away. "It's been ten minutes! I have to go and fight, okay?!" The Uchiha walked away from his crying teammate. The two were near one of restrooms. "My fight is about to start, so quit crying and come watch," he called over his shoulder.

Mayu sniffled, and then went after Sasuke. She wiped her tears away as she took strides after the Uchiha. _"I don't know why I got so upset…"_ She sniffed again. She knew that Lee would be as good as new. _"Once Tsunade comes into the picture… if she comes into the picture."_ The kunoichi picked up her pace, so that she was walking along side Sasuke. _"I've changed so much that things might not happen."_

Sasuke noticed her troubled look and sighed. "Would you stop worrying, already?" He shoved his hands into his pockets. "I can't stand it when girls cry. It pisses me off."

"Whatever…! It pisses me off when you act so arrogant!" Mayu retorted. "And anyway… your opponent… watch out for his hands, alright?"

"Why?" Sometimes his teammate would just seem to know things before experiencing them herself.

"You never know if someone might _cop a feel_!" Sasuke scowled—he should have known something idiotic was going to come from her mouth—but before he could respond, Hayate's voice beat him to the punch.

"Would the last two competitors come forth?" The man coughed again. Mayu patted her teammate on the back, and then dashed towards the stairs. It was a 'good luck' thing. Sasuke smirked as he moved towards Hayate. The purple-clad man had already made it to Hayate.

"_Like I need luck to win this."_ Sasuke faced his opponent, who had looked as if he were sneering. Then again, the man had on a mask, not to mention his eyes were covered.

**Akado Yoroi**

**VS.**

**Uchiha Sasuke**

"COME ON, SASUKE…! YOU BETTER NOT LOSE TO THIS GUY!" Naruto shouted down to his teammate.

"YEAH! ME AND NARUTO BETTER NOT BE THE ONLY ONES ON THE TEAM TO REACH THE FINALS!" Mayu cheered as well. _"I wonder how Sasuke is going to fight now that he's not restricted to only using taijutsu…"_

"Very well, then…" Hayate coughed again. "The last match of the preliminaries can begin when ready."

"Oh, I'm ready…" The older male formed a hand sign. Sasuke smirked again.

"Bring it on…!" Sasuke did not realize that Yoroi's hand glowed with blue chakra. The man's other hand dug around in his back pouch and pulled out several shuriken, which he threw at the Uchiha. Sasuke merely ducked low, successfully dodging the oncoming shuriken. Keep near to the ground, the Uchiha rushed at Yoroi. He pulled out a kunai form his holster. The man glared as he stepped forward. The boy was stupid to rush at him like that. Chakra gathered into hand again. All he had to do was wait for the Uchiha to come within range.

It did not take long for Sasuke to do this. Yoroi thrust his hand forward, but his palm hit nothing. Sasuke had forced chakra into his feet, causing his body to spring up and over Yoroi's body. The Uchiha landed and twisted his body around so that he could attack the man in his blind spot. There was no point in dragging this match on, after all. What Sasuke didn't count on was Yoroi swiftly turning. His hand gripped the handle of the kunai in Sasuke's hand. His other—chakra enveloped—hand pushed Sasuke's chest. The boy fell with Yoroi hovering over him.

Dark eyes widen when he realized what position he was currently in. _"She wasn't joking…!" _Sasuke grimaced as he felt the man press harder against his chest. "Ain't no boobs there, bitch!" Yoroi ignored the comment from the Uchiha. His hand glowed yet again. Under his purple face mask, he smirked when he saw that Sasuke was visibly weakening. The Uchiha had stopped struggling. His grip on his kunai had loosened. Yoroi quickly threw that aside with his free hand. "Wh-What the hell are you… do-doing to m-me?! My chakra…!"

Yoroi laughed as if he had just won the lottery. "You fool…! I have you right where I want you!" Sasuke's dark eyes grew wide as the words let the man's mouth.

"Let me g-go, you ho-homo freak!" The Uchiha, although some of his chakra was taken away, found the strength to kick the man off of him. He jumped away from Yoroi. He shuddered and held his violated body. "Don't you touch me!" Mayu blinked in surprise.

"_Okay… Didn't know that Sasuke had homophobia…"_ she thought, practically feeling a sweat drop sliding down.

Sasuke shuddered again as Yoroi looked at him in disbelief. "I'm not gay…!" He seemed highly offended.

"Could've fooled me!" Sasuke swallowed spit nervously. _"I can't get near him again… He has some type of ability that sucks the chakra right out of my body."_ He narrowed his eyes. _"Long-ranged attacks should work."_

"You fucking prick!" Yoroi, in anger, charged at Sasuke, palm at the ready. The man had average speed for a ninja. The guy dodging attacks from afar seemed plausible, but not likely. The Uchiha took this time to run through some hand signs. Rat, Tiger, Dog, Ox, Rabbit, Tiger…

"**Fire Style: Phoenix Fire Jutsu**!" Multiple small fireballs shot forth and headed for Yoroi. The man did not even move. He knew that that certain fire technique was short ranged. The fire would burn out before they would reach him because of the distance.

"You really think that's going to hit?!" Yoroi taunted. He did not count on the fact that the fireballs had shuriken hidden in the flames. The secondary attack riddled his body with the sharp weapons, causing the man to cry out in pain. Sasuke disappeared from his sight, causing the man to search frantically for him as he pulled the shuriken from his body. "Where are you, you little shit?! You can't hide forever!"

"Who's hiding?" Sasuke's voice came directly behind Yoroi. The man touched around and grabbed the Uchiha's skull.

"You think you're so goddamn clever, don't you?" Yoroi began sucking the chakra away. "Well, now you're defenseless!" He grabbed Sasuke's wrist. The boy shouted. He could feel the chakra being drained from his body. "It's over!" The Uchiha suddenly smirked. "Huh…?!"

"Yeah… it is over." Sasuke's voice came from a different direction. Yoroi slowly turned his head. He saw a smirking Uchiha a mere three yards away. His hands were forming hand signs. Snake, Ram, Monkey, Boar, Horse, Tiger… "**Fire Style: Grand Fireball Jutsu**!" Yoroi screamed as the giant ball engulfed his entire body along with the clone.

"YEAH, SASUKE, BRING THE HEAT!"

Oh, he brought it alright. Because of the flames, Yoroi would suffer through third-degree burns for the rest of his life. "The last match of the preliminary rounds goes to Uchiha Sasuke." Hayate announced. "Someone please tend to him." He gestured towards the fallen male. Medics appeared out of nowhere and carried Yoroi, who was groaning in extreme pain, away on a stretcher. "And with that match, the third exam's preliminaries are now over. The ones who qualify for the finals need to come down here to hear further instructions."

Gradually, all ten fighters who won their matches made their way down. They now stood in front of Hayate. Mayu nudged Sasuke's side. "Good job, you pyromaniac, you…!" She _tried_ to whisper. Naruto snickered, and then patted the Uchiha's shoulder.

"Yeah, that was awesome, but not better than mine!" Naruto didn't even try. Sasuke smirked.

"I was hiding my real abilities on purpose, dope."

Hayate cleared his throat to gain the attention of the three genin of Team 7. They were the only ones talking at the moment. "Congratulations to all ten of you." He continued. Anko, Ibiki, and the Third Hokage stood behind him. It was Sarutobi who began to speak.

"For the final round, each one of you will put your battle skills on display." It was at this point that Mayu had stopped listening. She had heard this speech at least twice already. And that was only because she was too lazy to watch it again and again like she did with the fighting. "… Now, in a _calm_ and orderly fashion, each of you will take one slip of paper from the box that Anko is holding."

"Everyone just stay where you are." Anko smirked. "I'll be the one that comes to you." She went to Ino, who was on the end, first. "Just take one," she told her. Ino placed her hand in the box and pulled out a piece of paper. Eventually, everyone had a slip of folded paper.

"Alright, starting from the left to the right, tell me the number that is written on your paper—and there is to be no trading, pinkie!" Ibiki gave a pointed looked towards Mayu. She had been trying to take Naruto's paper, grabbing at it and such. "You blondie, what's your number?" Ino frowned before responding.

"Eight."

"Next!"

"One."

"Seven."

"Four."

"Ten."

"Three."

"Two."

"Five."

"Nine."

"Six."

"Right. I will now tell you how the finals are going to work." The Hokage almost smirked at the disbelieving looks on the ten young genin. "Ibiki, you may reveal the ninja match up for the third part of the chuunin exam." The torture specialist flipped his clipboard over and held it up for all to see. Mayu's mouth dropped open in shock.

"_I knew that it was going to change, but to change this much…?! This is cruel and unusual punishment!"_ Green eyes grew wide as she continued to read over the clipboard. "No way…" she muttered. The match up went as follows.

_Uzumaki Naruto VS Akimichi Chouji_

_Aburame Shino VS Kankuro_

_Nara Shikamaru VS Temari_

_Uchiha Sasuke VS Haruno Sakura_

_Yamanaka Ino VS Gaara_

A grin slowly spread across the kunoichi's face. _"I get to fight Sasuke…?" _The grin became wider. _"I shouldn't be happy, and yet I'm so excited!"_ The Uchiha, on the other hand, had different thoughts.

"I've got to fight Mayu…?" He glanced at his teammate. "Judging from that grin, I'm guessing that she's happy with the way things turned out, but…" Sasuke looked towards the ground. He heaved an inaudibly sigh. "I wish she and Naruto had really traded… She's going to train hard for this month just so she can beat me, so I can't just knock her out whenever I want to."

"_I have to fight that guy…?!"_ Ino thought, eyes wide. _"Oh man! In the words of my teammate, this is so troublesome!"_ Her blue eyes took a glance at the red-headed ninja. For a moment, she only stared at his face. That is until Gaara turned to her. Ino squeaked, and then turned away. _"I am so gonna die!"_

"With that decided, we will adjourn until one month has passed. Until then, rest well, train hard, and do your best. And once again, congratulations on making it this far." Sarutobi placed the pipe back in his mouth. He rubbed his chin as he watched the genin converse among each other. His eyes moved to the kunoichi of Team 7, who was animatedly talking with Naruto, who was basically talking the same way. _"I must speak with that girl…"_

* * *

I am finished… Finally finished… This is definitely the most I've ever written in a while. Don't expect long pages like this in the future, though. I don't think it's possible for me to do unless the chapter has many battles in it… like this one.

**Chouji and Neji's fight**: weird, I know, but it made sense when I wrote it, so… yeah…

**Naruto and Kiba's fight**: yes, I did change the fight a little bit. Why? Simply because Naruto has help with his training. In the original _Naruto_ series, the dude didn't get help with training. Sasuke didn't help, Sakura never gave him the time of day, and Kakashi—it seemed like even he didn't help at all. In this story, his teammate actually came to him and offered to help, so I believe that he would be stronger than in the original.

**Sasuke and Yoroi's fight**: I really didn't want to ruin a good thing, but I think I did anyway, so you could flame me for that. I really think I messed up with this fight.

**Lee and Gaara's fight**: like I was _really_ going to describe that well known fight. Ha...! That fight was three or four episodes long, i think.

**The fights for the next round**: you'll just have to wait and see now, won't cha?

Next time: _Youth of the Nations_!


	8. Youth of the Nations

The three genin of Team 7 stared at their sensei, waiting for him to speak. He had called them to one of the training fields as soon as the Hokage had finished up his speech about the finals. The three had reached the designated area an hour ago. Kakashi had showed up about five minutes ago. Sometimes, it was so aggravating to have a ninja, who did not care about time, as a sensei. Hatake Kakashi gazed at his three students, proud that they had all made it to the finals. But at the same time, it was irritating. Luckily, he had thought ahead or it would be bothersome for him.

Naruto shifted impatiently in his seated position. Just how long was Kakashi going to keep them in silence? When he told them to meet him here, he made it sound like it was urgent. But he ends up not coming for a whole hour. A deep rumbling in Naruto's throat startled Kakashi out of his thoughts. He cleared his throat, causing the blond to stop growling. Finally he was getting on with it!

"Alright, I have gathered you are here to discuss how you three are to be trained for the finals of the chuunin exam. I have taken the liberty of assigning you three different trainers." Kakashi paused, waiting for the onslaught of protests. He did not have to wait long.

"What…?! What do you mean _different_?!" Naruto stood up and pointed an accusing finger at sensei. "You're not training us?! You lazy bum!" What surprise Kakashi the most is that Sasuke had also stood and protested with Naruto.

"We're not training together? But why? That's just stupid!"

Kakashi sighed before speaking. "I have other matters to attend to. I do not have time to train all three of you. And besides, two of you are going to fight each other in the finals. What's the point of fighting if you know how your opponent will come at you? Also, this way, you three can get stronger, faster." The copy ninja shoved his hands into his pockets. Naruto only growled some more as he crossed his arms. Sasuke merely looked away. Kakashi's visible eye focused in on Mayu. The kunoichi had yet to say anything on the matter. "Sakura, is there anything you'd like to say?"

Mayu curled up her legs so that her knees were pressed against her chin. "You're training Sasuke alone, aren't you, sensei?" she asked, frowning. This only caused the blond member of the team to go ballistic.

"What the hell, Kakashi-sensei?! Why does Sasuke get special treatment?! You're probably going to show him an awesome new jutsu, aren't you?!" Naruto did not lower his accusing finger. The copy ninja sighed wearily as he glowered in Mayu's direction. She certainly did have a weird way of being jealous.

"Now, now, you three. There will be no complaining." Kakashi scratched his head. "The reason that I will be supervising Sasuke's training is because I'm the only one in the village that has the Sharingan other than him. To put it bluntly, he needs this training from me. I hate to say it, but you two would only prove to be distractions for him." Mayu scoffed.

"Sounds to me like you're just favoring him!" The girl glared up at her superior. "You say that Naruto and I would be distractions, but the reason _all_ of us made it to the finals was because we helped one another, unknowingly or not! Saying that we're just distractions is an insult and I don't like it! I understand that training together for the finals wouldn't be very smart, but you don't have to say that we're distractions, sensei."

The two male genin blinked in surprise. They stared at the kunoichi of the team. No matter how calm she seemed, she still sounded pissed. And that glare sent tingles down their arms. Girls sure were scary when provoked, Naruto thought, gulping. Kakashi sighed again. "Sakura, I-" he tried.

"It's because I'm a girl, isn't it?!"

"Sakura, calm-"

"You sexist idiot! I'm gonna report-"

"SAKURA!"

A light chuckle stopped Mayu from speaking again. Four heads turned in the direction of the chuckle. Walking towards Team 7, one of the two familiar jounin chuckled again. "This is quite the team you've got here, Hatake." The female spoke with a grin. Naruto pointed a finger at the woman. "But the loud one is rude."

"What is _she_ doing here?!" Naruto's question went unanswered as Kakashi walked pass his subordinates. He greeted the two special jounin with a wave.

"Glad to see that you've made it."

"Kakashi-sensei, what are they doing here?" Mayu finally stood up. The three genin walked over and stood behind their sensei, waiting to be introduced. Kakashi looked back at both Mayu and Naruto.

"This two will be the ones who are going to train the two of you." The copy ninja seemed to smile under his mask. "Like you already know, this is Anko-sensei. She will train you, Sakura." Mayu looked towards the female version of Naruto. The woman grinned manically at the girl, causing her to chuckle uneasily. "And this-"

"I don't wanna be trained by this _closet pervert_!" Naruto interrupted. The male jounin pushed his dark glasses closer to his eyes.

"Such insolence…" he muttered as if offended.

"He's a… what?" Kakashi looked confused, as did Anko and Sasuke. Mayu, however, giggled. "What did you call him?"

"You're kidding me!" The blond did not answer his sensei's question. "Of all the people you could've picked and you picked this guy?! He's weaker than I am!"

"What makes you say that?" Kakashi asked still confused.

"I think you've got it wrong, Naruto. I don't think a jounin is weaker than _you_." Sasuke felt the need to make this statement known. Because of his words, his blond teammate glared at him before focusing his attention on his sensei.

"I'm serious! You should've seen it! I knocked this guy out cold with my Harem Jutsu! He fell to pieces after that!" Naruto could not believe that his sensei was actually trying to make him train under a pervert like Ebisu! Well, there was no way that was going to happen!

"Harem Jutsu…?" Sasuke muttered.

"It's basically the Sexy Jutsu with a lot of clones," Mayu whispered in his ear. She cupped a hand over her mouth as if to prevent others from knowing what she was saying. "It's really quite effective against perverts or men in general."

Ebisu quickly moved and covered Naruto's mouth to put a stop to him from saying anymore. "I didn't know you two were already acquainted." Kakashi blinked in surprise. Ebisu patted Naruto's head as he chuckled nervously.

"Yes, yes… We go way back!" The man ignored the sour look the blond was giving him. _"I will forever be haunted by that wretched jutsu!" _he thought. His eyebrow twitched several times as he remembered.

"I still don't get why it has to be him," Naruto grumbled. "I mean… I'd rather have the crazy lady instead." Anko, taking no offense to that, gave a hearty laugh.

"Calm down, already. Listen, Naruto, you're wrong about Ebisu-sensei," Kakashi told the blond. "He's a private tutor who only trains the elite. Frankly, he's a better teacher than I am." Naruto grumbled, not yet appeased by this information. "And anyway, out of the three genin of Team 7, you're the only one whose basic skills need the most work, which is why I'm having Ebisu train you."

"Wait a minute…! Are you honestly saying that I'm not as good as Sakura-chan or Sasuke?!" Naruto shouted. It was quiet for a few awkward moments. That is until laughter broke the silence. "Why the heck are you laughing, Sakura-chan?!" Chuckling followed. "You shut up, too, Sasuke-teme!" Kakashi sighed again. He seemed to be doing that a lot lately. His students were a hand full at times.

"Naruto, no matter how many skills you master, the basics are always fundamental. Yours can be improved greatly. If you really want to become strong, then be quiet and pay attention! He is the perfect teacher for you. Sakura, Anko will be training you because of your similarities, so I don't want to hear complaining from you either. And it's definitely not because I'm… _sexist_." Kakashi turned to his fellow jounin. "Alright, Anko-sensei and Ebisu-sensei, I leave them in your capable hands." The copy ninja began to walk away. "Come along, Sasuke." The Uchiha glanced back at his teammates before almost hesitantly following after his own sensei. It was going to feel weird not being able to see the two for a whole month.

"Well, we better get going, too, pinkie!" Anko's hand came down on Mayu's shoulder a little too hard. The impact caused the girl to flinch. "Wave goodbye to your team, girl! This is the last time they see you as you are." Mayu blinked, and then did as she was told. "That's the spirit! Now let's get going! As your sensei for one month, there will be no fooling around. Now, follow me!" The dark purple-haired woman sped off, leaving a dust cloud in her wake. Green eyes grew wide at the speed of the woman. Mayu took off after Anko, calling and pleading for her to wait up. Training with the woman was not going to be easy…

* * *

Mitarashi Anko grinned as she watched her temporary student pant like a dog in front of her. "I'm actually pretty impressed so far. Other genin your age would've passed out by now." The grin did not disappear even as her student gave her a sour look. Mayu did not bother to stand from her hands and knees position on the ground. The young kunoichi was on the ground, outside a food building. The structure looked similar to that of Ichiraku Ramen Stand. Anko, still grinning, was sitting down on one of the stools. She had a skewer clenched between her teeth, having already finished off her tenth helping of dango.

"You… ha-had me… chase after… a sh-sha-shadow clone… for _two hours_!" Mayu crawled over to the stool beside where Anko was sitting. Using her arms, she pulled herself up into a sitting position. The older kunoichi swerved around on her stool. She took the wooden stick out of her mouth and placed it on the plate that was in front of her. "You… are an evil woman!" Anko only laughed again.

"Yeah, I get that one a lot!" She nodded her head as if it were obvious. Mayu grumbled some more as she faced away from her impermanent sensei. "Now that you're here, why don't you order some dango? This place is the best when it comes dango! I love it here! Order what you want! It's on me!" The younger kunoichi instantly perked up at the thought of food. Her green eyes practically had sparkles in them as she gazed at the menu above the servers. She grasped her hands together as her eyes darted to and fro. Anko sweated at the sight of Mayu practically bouncing in her seat. _"This girl sure does change with it comes to food…"_

Half an hour later, Mayu was finished eating. "GOCHISOUSAMA…!" She sighed in satisfaction as she rubbed her full belly. Anko gave a sigh of her own, but it was not in satisfaction. Tears flowed out of her eyes like waterfalls as she agonized over the loss of so much money. She wagged her empty brown wallet around. The jounin slowly turned her head to Mayu.

"Are you even a girl? Or are you an Akimichi in disguise?" Anko asked, tears still flowing. Mayu laughed loudly.

"_Call it pay back for making me chase something that wasn't even real!"_ she thought with an evil smirk. The jounin sighed again. "Oh well! No use crying over spilt milk!" Mayu stood up. "Let's start training!" Anko stood as well.

"Training…?" she repeated. She walked out of the building, causing Mayu to follow after her. "Why so soon…? You _did_ just make it out of the preliminaries… barely. Go home, take a shower—you _do_ stink—and rest your small body." The adolescent kunoichi frowned. She matched her pace to Anko's.

"But I should start as soon as possible! Sasuke's probably getting stronger right now!" Mayu shook her head. "I won't be left behind!"

The jounin stopped in her tracks. Mayu had to stop and back up because she did not as Anko did. "Why are you so worked up about that Uchiha?"

"I've…" Mayu looked away. "I've always dreamt of-"

"Marrying him? Are you one of those annoying Fangirls?" Anko placed her hands on her hip as she studied the girl in front of her. She leaned in and realized that the girl's face turned slightly pink at her words. _"Wonder what she's thinking about..."_

_When I get older… I'm going to marry you…_

A distraught look passed over Mayu's face as she continued to recall the dream she had back in the Land of Waves. To her, it was pretty disturbing, not to mention way out of character for her broody teammate.

_Marry you…_

_Marry you…_

_Marry you…_

Sasuke voice rang in her head like a broken record. Mayu suddenly screamed. Anko reeled back in shock as her pupil began to rapidly shake her head while screaming 'NO! NO! NO!' Anko, getting tired of her screaming, slammed both hands on her shoulders. The screaming instantly silenced. "Calm down, already! Don't freak out on me like that again! People already look at me weird alone!"

The young kunoichi frowned. "I was _not_ going to say that! How could you even think that?! He's my teammate for crying out loud!" Mayu ranted. "I was going to say that I've always dreamt about beating him, that's all!" She glared at her sensei, and got a glare in return.

"Alright, alright! Just calm your little ass down!" Mayu huffed, and then looked away. Anko sighed heavily, and then released the girl. "Fine, fine…! We don't have to wait until tomorrow to begin your training." Mayu's eyes lit up. "But first, you go home and shower. Like I said, you stink. The smell is almost unbearable." The girl silently fumed. "Meet me at the Hokage Monument at dusk." The girl blinked, and then nodded. "I can't _hear_ you, maggot!"

"Ma'am, yes, ma'am…!"

* * *

"You wished to see me, Hokage-sama?"

"Yes, of course, Anko-san…" Sarutobi replied. He looked up from the various and random papers on his desk. One would think that he'd have less work to do since the chuunin exam started, but no. That was not the case. "I wanted to discuss your training methods for Haruno Sakura." Anko blinked, truly taken by surprise. After all, why would the Hokage want to know something like that? It wasn't like the girl was in any way special.

Still surprised, Anko answered hesitantly. "… Well, first I want to build up her stamina. I'm having her run around the village as we speak, actually." Sarutobi nodded, waiting for her to continue. "Next I want to do chakra exercises. She told me that she has yet to walk on water, so I'm going to teach her that. That shouldn't take too long. Hatake did tell me that the girl had excellent chakra control. After that, I'll teach her a couple of jutsu. I figure that since she's going up against Uchiha Sasuke that she should know how to get out of genjutsu, so that's also on the agenda. Taijutsu is an absolute must as well. Lastly, I plan to toughen her body up by having her go through painstaking drills." The Hokage nodded again.

"I see… And you plan to do this all on one month?"

Anko shrugged. "Really, sir, I'm not sure. It all depends on the little tyke's progress." Sarutobi rubbed his beard. The old man seemed to be deep in thought about something. The kunoichi frowned, wondering what her leader was thinking. The Hokage ceased his humming and reached to pull out one of the drawers of his desk. His wrinkled old hand shuffled around in the drawer for few moments before pulling something out.

The item was a small brown piece of rectangle paper. It looked as big as the Hokage's palm. He held the piece of paper between his index and middle finger. "I want to see what type of affinity the girl has." He held the paper out to Anko, who took it from him. "You must do this as soon as possible, Anko-san. It is information that I must know." The purple-haired kunoichi nodded.

"Understood, sir…!" she exclaimed. _"But why…?"_ she questioned in thought.

* * *

"It's the eye of the tiger! It's the thrill of the fight!" Mayu said as she lifted the two dumbbells. It has been ten days since she had been under the tutelage of Mitarashi Anko. So far, her training had consisted of running, lifting weights, and jogging in place. Some days, she would lift weights and jog in place at the same time. That way she would get stronger and her stamina would improve as well. "Rising _up_ to the challenge of our rivals…!"

Anko looked up from reading a scroll. She stared lazily at her student, who was now dancing around as she sang. "Alright, that's enough!" The woman's loud voice reached Mayu's ears. The young kunoichi turned to her instructor, dropped the dumbbells, and then made her way over.

"Why, Anko-sensei? It's only mid-day."

Usually, the older kunoichi had Mayu do those types of exercises until 6 P.M., not a few minutes after noon. "Today is going to go a little different. Sit down in front of me." Mayu quickly followed the woman's orders. The last time she had tried to disobey—really she was just too slow to act—Anko had sent her snakes out. One could hear the screams from miles away. Not a fun experience at all… "To start off, you do know what elemental chakra is, right?" Anko's question was met with a blank stare. The kunoichi produced a flat look, and then rolled her light brown eyes. "Okaaaay, never mind that question. I'll just tell you." Anko sighed. "And Hatake said that you had brains…" she muttered. Ignoring Mayu's glare, she continued. "There are five basic types of elemental chakra. They are lightning, earth, wind, fire, and water. Let's say a ninja has an affinity for lightning—for them, it would be slightly easier to learn lightning based jutsu than a ninja that has an affinity for earth."

"Sooo… A ninja that is can use lightning based jutsu without a problem would have a problem with earth jutsu, but he can still use it?" Anko nodded at the question. "But what if they can pull off more than one element without a problem? Does that make them the Avatar?" Anko's face scrunched up in confusion. Just who the heck was 'the Avatar?' The older kunoichi shook her head.

"That rarely happens. On some occasions, though, a ninja might not have an affinity with any element." Mayu blinked and asked how you could tell which affinity a person could have. Anko smirked. "I'm glad you asked." The woman pulled out a piece of paper. "I really should have done this a few days ago, but oh well!" She gave the paper to Mayu, who inspected it. Nothing was written. It was just blank. "This is how you can tell what type of affinity you have. All you have to do is focus your chakra into it. The paper will split for wind, crumble for lightning, turn to dust for earth, burn for fire, and turn wet for water. Give it a shot."

"_Hm_… So, depending on what type I am, that's going to be the type of jutsu you teach me?" Anko shrugged.

"_Meh_…!"

"'_Meh_…!'?! What's that supposed to mean?!"

"Just do it already before I punish you for insubordination!"

Mayu 'eeped' and focused on the paper. Concentrating, she really hoped her affinity would be something cool. _"Like wind… or water!"_ She forced some chakra into her hand. She instantly felt burning sensation. She yelped loudly and flung the paper away. The paper burned up before it touched the ground. "_Aww_…" The girl visibly pouted at the results.

"I suspected as much," Anko remarked with a smirk. "You did perform that fire jutsu quite nicely. A genin really shouldn't be able to do that." Mayu smiled, liking the compliment. Sure Sasuke had helped her out a bit, but it still felt nice to get praised (Sasuke really didn't give out praises when he was teaching, see?).

"So now what?"

"Now… I'm leaving!" Anko chirped with a grin. Her grin grew wider when her student's face changed into a look of disbelief and annoyance. "You're going to stay here and continue with your exercises. I'll be back before ya know it." The woman turned to go. She almost instantly stopped by an overly excited Mayu, who had appeared in front of her. Anko raised an eyebrow. _"That was certainly fast…"_

"Could I have couple more of those element detectors?!" Mayu asked, not noticing the look her teacher was giving her. The woman rolled her eyes. The girl liked to label things with these weird names. Ten days ago, she was surprised, but now she was used to it.

Anko did not respond for a few seconds. She then shrugged, and pulled five pieces of paper from her jacket pocket. "Knock yourself out kid." The older kunoichi walked around the girl. She chuckled when she heard her pupil whooping in glee. _"Poor kid—she is fascinated by the smallest things."_

Mayu waited a few moments after Anko left. When she was sure that her sensei was long gone, a smirk spread on her face. "Stay and do exercises? Yeah right!" She quickly gathered the few items that was used to train and bounded off. Her destination was the village. _"I wanna see who else has an affinity to the elements!"_

* * *

Yamanaka Ino hummed lightly as she flipped through a fashion magazine. One could remember that she proclaimed that she did not need something as trivial as long hair. Well, as you can imagine, fashion was not long hair, so the girl allowed herself to occasionally read the update on fashion. It wasn't like she needed to read the articles dealing with make-up, though. With a face like her, who would? _"Okay, that's just the egotistical girl in me talking…" _The bleach blond sighed heavily as she closed the magazine. A bell rang, signaling that someone had entered the flower shop. "Welcome…!" she greeted with a cheery fake smile. It was like a routine. Her mother told her to smile as if the customer was your very friend.

"Hey, Ino-chan…!" an excited voice returned. The familiar voice of a real friend caused Ino's business smile to turn real.

"Forehead…! Long time, no see!" She watched her friend's face twist into a grimace. Even with the girl's sudden change, she still hated being called that. Ino chuckled lightly as her friend walked over to the counter.

"_Oooh_…! I really like your hair like that, Ino." Mayu prompt her head up with her hand and elbows, which were now resting on the counter. The blond reflexively touch her hair. She smiled lightly.

"Yeah, I had to cut it again… Hey, remember when I used to wear it this way when I younger? It was shorter, though, right?" Mayu nodded at the question. "But I still can't wait until it gets longer. It feels weird not having hair touching my neck." Ino took her hand away from rubbing her head. "So how's it going, Sakura-chan?"

Mayu had a long sigh. "It's been hard! My sensei trains me until I can't breathe sometimes!" The pink-haired crossed her arms. "And I don't even get to see how Naruto and Sasuke are doing with their training. What about you, though? Shouldn't you be training for your match?" Ino only smirked. "What?"

"Sunday's are my day off. My dad and sensei are working me to the bone. Today is my _only_ break time!" Mayu whistled.

"Sucks for you," she said, causing Ino to glower. "But it's no wonder… You are going up against Pand—I mean, Gaara." The blond female nodded solemnly. Her crestfallen eyes looked down at the counter. "_Err_… I'm sure it's not going to be that bad, Ino-chan…"

"Are you kidding me?!" Ino lifted her chin with a fierce look. "You saw what he did to Lee! Even with this extensive training from my father and Asuma-sensei, I could die. That _monster_ could actually-" The blond female did not finish her sentence. She had been interrupted by Mayu slamming her fist against the counter's top. Ino looked towards her friend to see that she was giving the coldest she had ever given to anyone. The blond briefly thought that she was hanging around Sasuke too long.

"Gaara is _not_ a monster! If you call him that again, I'll _cut_ you!" Her voice practically came out as a hiss. Ino unconsciously backed up. She held up her hands as if she were surrendering. Sakura's face softened. "Gomen… But I'm serious. He's just a confused individual, that's all."

"Jeez, my bad…!" Ino put her hands down. "And how do you know, anyway? He is from Suna. What can you possibly know about him, Sakura?" Mayu waved the girl's questions off.

"That's not why I'm here!" she said. Ino frowned, and then crossed her arms. Mayu pulled a brown slip of paper out of her pocket. She held it up for Ino to see. "_This_ is an element detector!"

The blond narrowed her eyes and gave her a skeptical look. "Really…?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. Mayu lost her excited look.

"Yes, really… Well… maybe… I'm not sure what it's called, but that's not really the point!" The young kunoichi waved her arms around frantically as if making a point. Ino rolled her eyes at the girl's actions. "Here, take it!" Mayu made a move to give it to the blond. She stared at it for a few moments before taking the small piece of paper. "Push some chakra into your hand."

"Why?"

"Cuz I said so, damn it!"

"Who do you think you're talking to?!"

"Yamanaka Ino, that's who, girl!"

"What'd you say?!"

"You heard me!"

"INO! NO YELLING AT CUSTOMERS!"

The blond glowered, and then sighed heavily. It was another thing her mom always told her. She couldn't help it if some of the customers were idiots! Blue eyes seemed to sneer at the girl in front of them. She was grinning smugly as if she had won the entire argument. "Whatever…" Ino muttered, forcing some chakra in her hand. The Yamanaka female blinked in surprise as the paper turned to dirt before her very eyes. "What the heck, Sakura?! Is this some sorta prank?! You've been hanging with Naruto too long!" Ino dropped down to reach for a small brush and dustpan. She stood and began to sweep up the dust that had fallen to the counter.

"Wasn't expecting that," Mayu commented.

"Expecting what?" Ino asked as she moved over to the trashcan. She dumped the dust and walked back over to the counter. Her father had moved the small bin away from the counter, telling her that it was 'another method of training.' Another method, my _ass_, Ino had thought at the time. It was just another way to torture the Yamanaka female. _"I never should have won my match…"_ Ino thought with a sigh.

"… hear me?" The girl's head snapped to attention.

"Huh? What did you say?"

"I said that you have an affinity with earth," Mayu answered with a frown. Ino gave her a blank look. "It means you can master earth jutsu quicker than normal." The blond kunoichi blinked. "My affinity is fire. That actually makes sense now that I think about it. You should try learning some earth jutsu for your upcoming match."

"I don't understand, but okay…"

"Alright_-tee _then…! Well, I better get going! I still have to see someone! See ya, Ino-chan!" Mayu turned to go.

"Matte, Sakura-chan…!" Ino called out. The pink-haired girl turned back around. "Buy something before you go."

"What?! No way!"

"You shouldn't come into a store without buying something, ya know? Besides, don't you want to buy a flower for Lee? You like him, don't you? You know… he might never… be a ninja again, right?" Ino tried to persuade the girl. Green eyes looked to the floor as Mayu thought about the green-clad ninja. Ino was surprised to see a smile appear on her friend's face. "Well, are you gonna buy a flower or not?" Mayu waved as she walked towards the door.

"Don't _even_ have the money for it! I'll come back for it later, though!" With that said, the kunoichi walked out of the door. Ino sighed heavily. Her friend sure was weird nowadays. Blue eyes looked up at the ceiling in thought.

"_Earth jutsu, eh…?"_

* * *

Hyuga Hinata toddled through the town. Her target was the village's hospital. Her cousin, Hyuga Neji, was still being treated their. He had been released from extensive care just yesterday. Akimichi Chouji had certainly caused a great deal of damage to his body. Today was the first day that Neji could have visitors. She would have gone first thing—Neji was her cousin, after all—but due to the fact that her father had found about the details of her fight in the chuunin preliminaries, he decided to train her morning, noon, and night! The Hyuga female was half surprised when he told her that she could have the day off. Hinata, though, suspected that Hanabi complained that she wasn't getting trained as much anymore. And of course, 'daddy always listens to his favorite daughter!' _"Of course Hanabi-chan's the favorite… She cute and small, not like me, not anymore… Father used to treat me the same way, didn't he?"_ the Hyuga mused in thought.

Suddenly, a blur of pink and red raced pass the Hyuga. Hinata's short dark hair hit her face repeatedly. With her free hand, the Hyuga pushed her hair out of her eyes. Her lavender colored eyes widen upon realizing who the blur was. "S-Sakura-chan…?!" she called out. She wondered if the girl was running away from a bee again. Once, while the two girls were sparring, she had cried out 'BEE!' and dashed away at extreme speeds. Needless to say, their training session was over for that day.

A screeching sound could practically be heard as Mayu came to a stop. She turned to see a friendly Hyuga approaching her. "_Ah_, Hinata-chan…! Just the person I wanted to see!" Mayu grinned. Hinata smiled as she stopped in front of the girl. Recently, it had been quite a pleasure to greet _Sakura_. Back in the Academy, the most the girl had said to her was 'Do you like Sasuke-kun? Good cuz he's _my_ future husband!' This changed Haruno was nice.

"Why were you running? Was it a bee that you saw?" Hinata asked. Mayu looked confused.

"How'd you know? Are you psychic?" she questioned. The Hyuga released a light chuckle and shook her head. "But anyway, I wanted to—hey, why do you have those balloons?"

"Oh, I'm going to visit Neji-san." Mayu winced at her answer.

"Still in the hospital, huh?" Hinata nodded. "Maybe that will teach him not to call Chouji-san fat ass, ne? Ya know he's probably going to pop those balloons, right?"

"Sakura-chan…!" Hinata scolded lightly. Mayu only shrugged. "So what is it that you wanted to see me for?" The pink-haired girl grinned again, and then dug into her pocket. She pulled out a brown piece of paper and handed to the Hyuga. Hinata only looked at it in confusion. "What is this?"

"This is an element detector! Push some chakra into it and it will tell you your natural affinity. Mine was fire!"

"You sure do sound excited, Sakura-chan."

"What can I say? The smallest things entertain me! Now it do!—I mean, do it!"

Hinata nodded, and then focused her eyes on the paper. The paper turned wet and went limp in her hand. "Does this mean… my natural affinity is water?" The Hyuga supposed it made sense. She had worked with water before. In fact, that is how she finally mastered the Protective Eight Trigrams: Sixty-Four Palms technique. It was a technique of her own creation and water had aided her with its development.

"Sugoi, Hinata-chan…! That means you are better suited to learning water style jutsu. That's so awesome!"

"Yes, well…" Hinata awkwardly replied. Mayu had called the Hyuga 'awesome' before, but she had never hugged her as she said it.

"Hey, before I found you, I went home and got some money. I was going to buy a flower for Lee, who is also in the hospital." Mayu released the girl. "How about you come with me to buy the flower, and then we'll both go to the hospital together?"

"That sounds fine." Hinata agreed. It would be nice to hang out with someone other than a boy. Don't get her wrong. She adored her male teammates, but seriously, they—especially Kiba—would never understand the mind of a girl or woman.

"Alright, let's go!" Mayu hooked her arm with Hinata's. The pink-haired kunoichi practically dragged the Hyuga down the street in the opposite direction of where they had been going.

"How has training been going for you?" Hinata asked as the two girls walked. Mayu sighed wearily before answering.

"Hectic, you…?"

"Well, since Shino-kun was the only one who made it to the finals, Kurenai-sensei is focused on training him. Kiba-kun is helping with his training. I am being trained by my father. It's tough, but I manage. Today, he gave me the day off."

"Man…! Everyone seems to get the day off but me…!" Mayu complained. "Stupid, Anko-sensei…!"

"_Ah_… _Ano_… What about Naru-Naruto-kun? How is h-h-his tr-training going?" A blush appeared on the Hyuga's face as she spoke. Mayu grinned at Hinata with such mischievous intent that the Hyuga cursed mentally. She should have never brought up her long time crush in the presence of his impish teammate, who liked to cause trouble, especially if Naruto and she were involved. The pink-haired ninja actually called it 'NaruHina.' And every time Mayu had said it, Hinata felt so embarrassed and in most cases, would not stop stammering.

"Hohohoho…!" Mayu laughed obnoxiously. Hinata almost rolled her eyes. "Is lil Hinata-chan finally taking the initiative in the NaruHina development?" A brilliant shade of red settled on the Hyuga's cheek.

"I-I was… I was just as-asking…! It—It was me-merely a question!" Hinata tried to protest, but Mayu was hearing none of that. She, again, laughed loudly, most likely drawing attention to the both of them.

"Sounds to me like you want some of Naruto's good lovin'…! Naughty, naughty, Hinata-chan!"

"It was just a question…!" Hinata squeaked in a slightly louder voice. Mayu only snickered. "I do wish you would not do this to me, Sakura. I don't think I can take much more…"

"Relax, Hinata-chan! I'm just messing with ya!" The pink-haired kunoichi quickened her pace, causing the Hyuga to do the same. They had reached their destination. "Hey, Ino-chan! I'm back…!" she drawled out.

"Oh, goody…!" Ino rolled her eyes. "I see you've brought someone…"

"Yeah, this is Hinata, as you already know," Mayu introduced. She began looking around at the wide variety of flowers. Ino nodded her head as her blue eyes examined the Hyuga female. Hinata shifted uncomfortably under the blond kunoichi's gaze.

"I never knew you were so strong, Hinata-chan. You were always so quiet back in the Academy." Ino walked from behind the counter. She moved over to the two girls. "Your match with Sakura was quite surprising."

"Puh-leaze…! It's usually the quiet ones you have to look out for. They're dangerous!" Mayu commented. She squatted down to get a better look at a pink flower. Hinata blushed in embarrassment and tried to scold Mayu. She knew it wouldn't do any good, however. "Oooh…! This one's cute! I think I'm going to get it for Lee." Ino curiously walked over to her pink-haired friend.

"_Ah_, the purple Iris flower…" Ino mused. "It symbolizes inspiration."

"Really…? Then it's perfect for Lee! I'll take one of those!"

"Alright." Ino slid open the glass door and pulled out a single Iris. "What about you, Hinata-chan? Are you buying flowers? I notice that you already have balloons. Visiting your cousin?"

Hinata nodded her head. "Today is the first day he is allowed visitors." The Hyuga walked over to the two girls and looked at the flowers behind the glass casing. "I would like to get a flower that means… good luck or get well soon. Maybe you have something like that?" Ino smirked.

"As it turns out, we do. It's called the Yarrow flower and it means good health. Would you like that?"

"Yes, please."

"Wait, wait, wait…! If it's something for Neji, then it should mean something like… egotistical or melodramatic. It is Hyuga Neji we're talking about, right?" Mayu stood as Ino began laughing.

"I've only talked to him for a moment, but that was definitely the impression I got from him." The two girls giggled, while Hinata stood idly by, blushing. A small chuckle escaped her lips. Her cousin could be dramatic about certain things at times. "Hey, how about an Amaryllis flower? It means dramatic. The petals are bright red with white on its inner petals."

"That would be fine." Hinata nodded in agreement. Ino's hand closed the glass case. She said that those flowers were kept in the back and went to go get one. Hinata and Mayu walked over to the counter and waited for the blond to return. "Sakura-chan… You never did answer me about your teammates' training."

"You asked about Naruto, not Sasuke," Mayu corrected, looking almost bored. "And anyway, I don't really know how their training is coming along. Kakashi-sensei split us up. We have different sensei to train us for the finals now."

"Oh, I suppose that makes since."

"I'm back… Are these together or separate?" Ino asked, placing the two flowers in small clear bags. Mayu told her to just ring them up together. Before Hinata could protest, however, Mayu gave the money to Ino.

"Take it easy, Hinata-chan. You did already buy balloons for that ingrate." Mayu waved off Hinata's squeaks of disapproval. She took the flowers from Ino.

"Hold on a minute…! I'm coming, too." Ino took off her yellow apron.

"Why?"

"I just got word that Chouji's in the hospital because he ate too much barbeque, and then started training right after. He got cramps so bad that he can't even move!"

Mayu shook her head. "I guess Chouji is actually serious about the finals." Ino walked behind the counter.

"You have no idea… Shikamaru just things the whole thing is troublesome, though." The blond turned her head slightly. "MOM! I'M GOING OUT WITH SOME FRIENDS!"

"ALIRHGT!"

"Okay, let's go visit our stupid male counterparts." Mayu and Hinata chuckled lightly at Ino's comment.

* * *

Rock Lee cracked open an eye. For a moment, he only stared up at the ceiling. It had been yet another dreamless slumber. He heaved an inaudible sigh and turned his head. He was surprised to see a purple flower near his bed. The single purple flower was in small clear vase with water. His eyes widen a fraction. Someone had been here while he had been sleeping. Although, youthful, his sensei wouldn't have stopped at one single flower. Most likely, there would be flowers, decorations, and balloons around the room if it had been Gai-sensei. Perhaps it was his teammate, Tenten. Lee should his head right away. No, the girl would probably be giving Neji flowers, not him. _"Then who…?"_

The taijutsu user suddenly heard the door to his room open. He slowly turned his head towards the entrance of his room. His dark eyes gradually grew wide in shock. There she was, a green-eyed goddess walking towards his bed. "_Ah_, Lee…! You're up! I thought I wouldn't get to talk to you." Was this a dream? Had Haruno Sakura really came to see him? She boldly sat on the edge of his bed and smiled. "How are you feeling?"

Lee sat up, albeit slowly. He was surprised that the girl did not say anything about his actions. Usually, the nurses would scold him if he tried to move a muscle. "Sak-Sakura-san…? Wh-What are you… do-doing here?" His voice was scratchy and his throat was sore and dry. He hadn't said anything since he was brought to the hospital, after all. The pink-haired kunoichi quickly handed the older male a glass of water. "A-Arigatou…" He gulped down the water as if it were his lifeline. After finishing, Lee repeated his question.

"What type of friend would I be if I didn't come visit you, huh, Lee?" She took the cup away from him and placed it on the table, next to the flower. "Did you see? I brought that in for you. It's called an Iris. It means inspiration."

"Inspiration…?" Lee repeated, dumbly. The girl turned her head away.

"Yeah, you inspire me, Lee. Even with this minor setback, I know that you continue to inspire me for years to come… as a great ninja of Konoha."

"But Sakura-"

"Kissu…!"

Sakura's lips once again made contact with Lee's cheek. She grinned at his awestruck expression. "Like I said, it's only a minor setback." The girl stood from the bed. "Get better soon, Lee. You just have to see me kick Sasuke's ass in the finals! I'll be seeing you!" She walked towards the door.

"Matte, Sakura-san…!" The girl stopped. His voice had gotten louder than normal. "Why is it that you… are inspired by me? The doctors told me that… I'd never be a-" The kunoichi's sudden movement of her arm interrupted his sentence. His dark eyes expanded when he saw her thumb up. Without turning to face the taijutsu-user, she spoke.

"Because _only_ Rock Lee has what it takes to make it through this ordeal! And for that, I'll always admire you!" The girl dropped her arm. "I have to go now, though. Hinata-chan and Ino-chan are probably waiting for me down in the lobby. See ya." She quickly moved towards the door. Without another word, Haruno Sakura disappeared from Lee's eyesight.

A smile slowly spread across his face. He looked towards the Iris again. It was ironic. She came to him and said that he encouraged her. But in the end, it was she that had caused a smile to appear on the taijutsu-user's face. Lee slowly closed his eyes in content. "Inspiration…" he muttered to himself.

* * *

"Where have you been?!" Ino placed her hands on her hips after she had stood from her seated position. Mayu waved off her half-glare. "It doesn't take that long to deliver one flower. The sun is already setting for crying out loud!"

"Gomen, gomen… I just got caught up waiting for Lee to wake up! You know I had to dodge and hide from nurses who kept telling me that my time was up! That was not fun! I swear these nurses are like vultures sometimes." A couple of nurses, who had heard, scowled at the kunoichi. "So, let's get going! Anko-sensei's gonna—hey, what's wrong, Hinata-chan?" The pink-haired kunoichi had just noticed the downcast look the Hyuga had been sporting.

The Hyuga's head snapped up. A discomfited looked crossed the girl's features. She shook her head. "It's nothing, really…" Mayu gave her a dubious look. Ino sighed, and then rolled her eyes.

"Her dear cousin was being mean to her."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Hinata stood up and waved her arms around in frantic motions, begging Ino to shut up. "He was not…! He was just… dis-disgruntled about his current position, that's all." The blond kunoichi scoffed.

"He popped the balloons and threw the flower outta the window! Not to mention he said some pretty mean things. I personally wanted to kick his ass for it!" Hinata sighed heavily. Now that the pink-haired girl knew what happened, she would surely go on a rampage.

Surprisingly, Mayu only yawned. "I'm tired, let's go…" she muttered. She did not turn back to see if the two girls were following her. "Anko-sensei is probably pissed because I'm not where I'm supposed to be." Ino shrugged, and then went after her friend. Hinata, hesitantly, did the same.

**Inner Mayu: CHA! The next time I see that girly man, he's dead!**

Minutes later, the three girls were heading towards town. Hinata said that she had to pick one more thing up before she headed home, so that is why she did not split from the two other girls when her turn came. The talked about random things as they walked. Clothes, weapons, missions, and boys were just some of the subjects that came up. Needless to say, Ino, during the conversation of crushes, became a top supporter of the NaruHina movement. When the Hyuga finally left the two giggling girls, she was blushing mad.

"I can hardly believe it…!" Ino continued to laugh even though Hinata had left awhile ago. "Naruto, the dunce and Hinata, the meek little mouse!" She sighed dreamily. "They'd be so cute together. That knucklehead needs someone to calm him down!" Mayu nodded in agreement.

"Oh no! It's dark!" she grumbled. Ino shrugged.

"So…?"

"I really am gonna die by the hands of my enraged sensei! And I forgot to see what type of affinity Lee, Chouji, and Shikamaru has…! This is so not awesome!" Mayu complained loudly. Ino only shook her head with a smile on her face. Her friend was obviously crazy in the head. "OMG…!" Ino suddenly found that her arm was constricted in Mayu grip.

"Nani…?!" she grumbled, both annoyed and pained. The pink-haired girl had a vice grip. Mayu pointed a shaky finger towards a dark alley.

Ino's blue eyes squinted over to the darkness of the alleyway. She could distinctively see movement. Suddenly, cold—very—light green eyes flashed in the darkness, causing Ino's heart beat to quicken. Small bumps emerged on her skin as the wind sudden picked up. It made her shiver. The girl beside her, however, squealed in delight. "Did you see that?!" she asked, enthusiastically. "That was him…! That was Gaara!"

Ino's blood ran cold within her body. Those cold eyes belonged to her opponent. Not even Uchiha Sasuke's eyes had been that… _acidic_. The blond kunoichi shook her head to get rid of the feeling of dread that had build up. "Wh-Why do you sound excited about it?" Ino began to walk in the other direction, but stopped when she realized that Mayu had yet to let go of her arm. She had also realized that her friend stayed rooted to the spot.

"Let's go see 'em!"

"Have you truly gone insane?! I'm not going anywhere near him! Not more than I have to!" Ino finally yanked her arm free.

Mayu stared at her as if she just said someone stolen the last of the cookies. The blond kunoichi could practically see the tears welling up in her eyes. "So you would rather let me go alone and not be heard from again the next morning?" she asked. "Do you really want that on your conscious? You're such a mean friend, Ino!" With that last note, Mayu dashed off towards the alley. Ino swore under her breath and stomped her foot as she watched her friend's back disappear.

"I'm not going after her…! I won't! She's crazy, but _I_ have a brain!"

She stayed in that place for a few more moments. Mayu had yet to return. _"Kuso…!"_ The blond rushed towards the alley. It wasn't long before she spotted her friend. She was moving her head around as if searching for something. Ino's own blue eyes looked around warily. So far, there was not one sign of the sand-user. For that, the blond was relieved. "See… There's no one even here! We were both imagining things! Can we go now?"

"To the roofs…!" Mayu exclaimed, and then jumped up. Ino sighed heavily, and then followed her fellow kunoichi up. She almost missed the shy girl that her friend used to be. On top of the nearby building, the two girls' eyes searched for the frightful looking Suna shinobi. Mayu suddenly released another squeal, but this time it was much more controlled. "There he is…!"

Ino swallowed hard. She was almost afraid to look. She slowly turned her head in the direction that Mayu was—rudely—pointed her finger. The Yamanaka almost breathed a sigh of relief. Her opponent for the finals, Gaara, had his back to them. Plus, there was the added bonus of him being two buildings away. Judging from the angle of his head was tilted, Ino guess that he was looking up at the moonless sky. "Good thing he doesn't notice us, right, Sakura?" There was no answer. "S-Sa-Sakura…?!" She saw that her friend was moving slowly towards the building where the Suna ninja was. Ino tugged her shortened hair in frustration, and then took her after her.

It did not take long before both girls' feet touched down on the building where Gaara sat. The red head did not seem to be taken by surprise by the girls' presence. He did not make a move to turn and greet them either. Perhaps, they could just leave since he wasn't going to acknowledge them… Mayu cleared her throat. _"No such luck…"_ Ino sighed inaudibly.

"Hey there, Gaara-kun…! Do you… remember me?" The voice sounded cute and dream-like. Her tone made Ino roll her eyes. She used to use that voice whenever she—tried—to talk to Sasuke. Blue eyes enlarged as the sudden thought hit her. Her friend couldn't possibly _like_ this guy, could she?!

"Haruno…" a gruff response was heard, causing Ino to focus.

"You remembered…! Sorta…" Mayu almost seemed disappointed that he hadn't called her 'Mayu-chan,' but then again, it was probably better that he didn't. After all, Yamanaka Ino was right there beside her.

"What do you want?"

"I want…" Mayu took a step forward.

"Sakura…!" Ino hissed.

"I want to be your friend."

"_Friend_…?"

Ino stopped glaring at her stupid friend. She slowly turned to the red head. He had a look of confusion on his face. It seemed as though he had never even heard of the word. The Yamanaka heard her friend gasp overdramatically beside her. "Yes, I want to be your friend. It is a person who you can… talk to and open up to. Ino, here, and I are friends. We aren't just comrades or allies." Light green eyes shifted over to the blond, who involuntarily froze. She tried to look away, but her body seriously wouldn't move. How could her friend ever like someone with such piercing eyes? Ino's body trembled under his hawkish stare.

"Why…?" he asked. He did not remove his eyes from Ino's frightened form. "Why would you want to be my… _friend_?" The blond almost felt guilty. It sounded as if the red head had never said the word either.

"Because… it looks like you need it—a friend, I mean. Everyone could use a friend or two, right?" Mayu grinned big. She moved forward again. She was a mere foot away from the Suna ninja.

"Sa… ku… ra…" Ino whispered. Gaara still had not taken his eyes off the blond. He was… studying his next opponent, she realized. Finally, his light green eyes moved to Mayu. Ino almost sighed in relief again.

Mayu had held her hand out, wanting him to shake it. The red head only looked at it in bewilderment. "You're supposed to shake it… like this." Mayu grabbed her own hand and shook it to show Gaara how it was done. If the kid had eyebrows, they would be knitted together. He suddenly grabbed his own hand and shook. Ino's mouth dropped open. Gaara looked towards Mayu's hands to see if he was still doing it right.

_"… That… was sorta… cute…"_

"No, no, no, Gaara-kun…! You're supposed to shake my hand." Mayu boldly grabbed his hand and shook it. "Put 'er there, pal!" As their connected hands went up and down in the air, Gaara continued to stare wide-eyed at the girl.

"Ne, Sakura…! Can we go now? I'm not supposed to be up this late!" Ino, of course, lied. This whole scene seemed unnatural to her eyes. Mayu turned her head in the blond kunoichi's direction.

"Yeah, in a second." She turned back to Gaara and released his hand. She dropped down on one knee and _hugged_ him. A choked gasp came from Ino's mouth. Judging from the look on Gaara's face, he, too, had done the same.

"_She has lost her mind…!"_ Ino's hands grabbed her cheeks and waited for the blood to come. Luckily, it never did. The Yamanaka supposed that Gaara was much too surprise to start an attack on her fanatical friend.

Mayu stood up, and then backed away slowly. Yes, that's right, no quick movement, Ino thought. Her friend moved closer and closer back to Ino's side. "You're… different…" Gaara bowed his head as if he were contemplating something. Mayu had yet to lose her grin.

"Yeah, sometimes being is the greatest thing a person can do! It's hard sometimes because, unfortunately, most people fear what they don't understand." She smiled sadly at this. "But it's up to the friends of that person to get people to start understanding." Mayu nodded her head, satisfied about what she had said. "Well, we better get going! I'll see you at the finals, Gaara-kun." Mayu jumped off the roof, calling Ino down as she went. She ran off into the night, not seeing if her friend had followed. After all, she was in a hurry. Her sensei really was going to maim her. Hopefully, the blond didn't stick around.

However, Yamanaka Ino stayed rooted to the spot. She stared at Gaara for a little while longer. "My friend is an idiot, obviously… But if you even think about hurting her, I'll-" Light green eyes unemotionally stared the blond. She did not finish her sentence. She unconsciously backed up.

"Come on… Aren't you going to finish your threat, girl?" A sinister smirk spread on the Suna ninja's face. Ino swallowed hard.

"I don't really think I have to."

Sand swirled around the red head. Ino's eyes grew wide. She was afraid that he would suddenly attack her. Gaara looked away, completely aloof. "You're pathetic. I can sense your fear a mile away. Your whole body is shaking from just one look. You're a waste of my time. I should kill you now, so more of my time won't be wasted." The sand slowly inched towards the blond. Now, Yamanaka Ino was never the type of girl to let a guy intimidate her, but guys with eyes like that was exceptions. Even with her impending doom approaching, she still let a smirk spread. Noticing the smirk playing on her lips, Gaara frown. The sand ceased its movement. That smirk had intrigued him somewhat. Not many people smirk before they die, after all. "Why… are you looking that way?"

"… I… know… your… weakness."

"You lie." Gaara narrowed his eyes. He did not find liars tolerable at all. Liars needed to be exterminated off the face of the planet.

"I have no reason to. You're curious aren't you? You won't kill me now because you're curious to see if I do know your weakness. Believe me, I do… I don't think I can pull it off as I am right now, though, so you're just going to have to wait to the finals to… _kill_ me." Before Gaara could respond, Ino had jumped from the roof to the safety of the streets below. Gaara's lip twitched. She would not be safe for long. She had only about twenty more days to live. The red head snorted.

"Interesting prey…"

* * *

Mayu blindly raced through the forest, trying to find the training spot that her sensei, Mitarashi Anko, had picked out. The girl silently prayed that her teacher had not come back from whatever it was that she was doing. But with her luck, the possibility was slim. Mayu had got so caught of in talking to her friends that she completely disregarded the time. Her teacher was not much of a saint and her patience was a thin as paper. "I am so gonna get punished…" Mayu slowed her run to a fast-paced walk. The training site was coming closer into view.

It was time to face the music. Mayu slowly walked into the clearing. There was no sign of Anko. Not was trace of her was detected by the young kunoichi. Mayu breathed out a sigh of relief. "Safe…!" she exclaimed. A sudden tingling down her spine caused the girl to stiffen.

"Care to repeat that, maggot?" an angry voice hissed. A hand clamped down on the girl's shoulder. Mayu could easily tell that Anko was pissed all based of the strength behind her clenching hand. The girl refused to cry out in pain, no matter how much it hurt like hell.

"_D'oh_…!" She settled for that instead.

"Where the hell have you been all day…?! I returned here hours ago, just to find you missing!" Anko supplied no sympathy for the girl's whimpers. "I immediately thought that Orochimaru had come back for you! You little moron!"

"I apologize for my insolence!" Mayu squeaked. The older female finally released the girl. "I was just—I wanted to see what type of affinities my friends had. Forgive me…!" The young genin turned and bowed her head low. Anko scoffed at her actions.

"There is no need for the groveling. Tomorrow morning, we'll start the intense training. I was going to wait, but since you're made me angry, we're starting earlier!" The woman crossed her arms. A devious smirk found its way onto her face. Mayu paled in anticipated fear. "But right now, Hokage-sama wanted me to give you this." She pulled a scroll from her trench coat's pocket. "While you are being trained by me, you are also going to have to learn the jutsu that is in that scroll."

Mayu unrolled the scroll. Her green eyes scanned the words that it contained. "The Flame…?" she muttered, blinking. Also on the scroll were names. The names were transparent under the dried blood. Mayu took a guess and decided that the 'blood names' were from people who had mastered the jutsu so far. It was weird, though… Out of all the names, none of them had put their surname down. The girl shrugged. She supposed that maybe that was the way to do it. The last name covered in blood was _Morino_. "I'm guessing it's a fire jutsu…"

"That's right, and for some reason, the Hokage wants to see if you can master it within the time period before the exam starts up again." Anko shrugged. "It must be hard. Too bad _my_ training is going to be much harder from now on!" Mayu averted her eyes and tried not to think about what the brash woman had in store for her. She wrapped the scroll back up and pocketed it. "Meet me here at 4:00 A.M. sharp. If you're even one minute late, I will make you run laps and fight off ten snakes." Mayu shuddered. "Dismissed…!" Anko grinned.

"_Oh, woe is me…"_ The young kunoichi mentally cried a river.

* * *

This chapter was basically for telling the readers who was getting trained by who with Squad 7. This chapter was also for the purpose of letting the readers know how other people—aside from Squad 7—feel and act around the changed _Sakura_. That whole Gaara scene—I really loved it when it was in _My Life as Hyuga Hinata_, so I decided to use that just a little earlier than TFK-chan did.

Alright, there will be one more chapter before the third part of the chuunin exam picks up again. The chapter is probably going to be short, but it will be important. I'm sure that some of you can guess what's going to happen next based on the title to the next chapter.

Next time: _Will the Real Haruno Sakura Please Stand Up?_

I'm looking forward to see your amazing reviews!


	9. Will The Real Haruno Sakura Stand Up?

_Dr. Sagara, please report to the ICU... Dr. Sagara, please report to the ICU..._

Ishikari Chinoutori nearly dragged his feet down the hall. He was in the hospital again. It was normal to be here nowadays. Day by day of coming to this place was slowly wearing him down. His daughter, Ishikari Mayu, had yet to waken from comatose. It had been several months since she ran into that car. Several long months since the girl had opened her blue eyes. He missed his daughter so much. The sound of her laughter, the smile that was usually plastered on her face—he missed everything about his one and only daughter.

_"Daughter…"_ The man sighed too softly to be heard. How could he be sure that that fact was even true? Although he would always love Mayu like she were his own, but… that did not excused the fact that she was found in the Ishikari shrine at the age of nine. She had no memories whatsoever, beside her name. She was telling the truth back then. DNA tests confirmed it. The blood that flowed through her veins belonged to an Ishikari.

It was like an oxymoron. A life being surrounded by death… The Ishikari shrine was actually a burial site for any and all Ishikari. An oxymoron, yes, but… it sparked the musings of the age-old Ishikari legend. A child being discovered with the dead… An Ishikari free of another's blood—free of 'the eyes'… A child of legend… It couldn't be her, and yet all the facts gathered pointed to it. A child would appear, only to disappear in the near future. As it turns out, newly married Ishikari Chinoutori and Ishikari Sheena grew fond of the little girl, and decided to call her theirs.

With a blank mind, it was easy to convince the child that she was the daughter of the two Ishikari. Other members of the clan did not like the idea, but it was ignored. Chinoutori had been a rebel since birth. He wanted a child so he decided it was okay to keep the girl until his wife produced him one. Besides, two years after the girl was found, she had yet to disappear. Chinoutori had convinced the Ishikari elders that Mayu was not the child of legend. And she wasn't. He was also convinced of this.

Chinoutori chuckled mirthlessly.

He had been as foolish as he was in his youth. Over the years, he had watched Mayu grow up and he had become attached to her. A stupid thing to do, given the circumstances of her 'birth.' Chinoutori clenched fingers into a fist as he continued to walk down the hallway. His wife would soon be as to check up on Mayu. He had to appear as if everything was okay. Their daughter would wake up soon and they could all go back to living happily with each other. And with Kami-sama as his witness, he would _never_ allow Mayu to sell candy again.

The man placed his hand on the metal bar, and opened the door to the room. In his other hand was a fresh bouquet of flowers. The other bouquet had withered and died a few weeks back—it had been her thirteenth birthday—so it was time to bring in the new ones. Hopefully, Mayu would wake up to the smell of her favorite flowers. Chinoutori stepped into the room. He sighed again as he closed the door behind him. Without looking towards the bed, he greeted his daughter with false cheer. "Good afternoon, Mayu-chan…! Feel better soon, alright?" He finally turned his head towards the bed, only to find that Ishikari Mayu was no longer lying in the bed. Only the indention of where her body once laid was left behind. _"Calm down—calm down—calm down—calm down…!"_ It ran like a chant through his head as the man's breathing began to increase.

His daughter was missing…

No, she could be—she could be up and walking around. Mayu had always been impatient. She probably just got up and left the room, searching for something to do. Chinoutori turned and moved towards the door. He was about to open the door, but hesitated. "What if…" he murmured to himself. His body trembled at the possibility. He pinched his eyes shut, trying to concentrate. He slowly turned his head towards the bed. With his 'eyes' he saw the unusual large amount of chakra surrounding the bed. "No…!" He breathed out. "Not her…! Not her…! Damn it, not her…!"

Ishikari Mayu had returned from whence she came.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

In the middle of a grassy field, there laid a lone body. Upon closer look, the ANBU that had been patrolling the area realized that it was a female's body. The cat-masked female leaned in closer to the child. By inspecting the girl, the ANBU discovered that the girl was no older than thirteen. Her dark hair cascaded around the girl's face and pooled around her head. The girl's darker than normal skin tone was pale as if the girl hadn't seen the sun in months. She must have been a foreigner, the woman assumed. No one in Konoha had that complexion. She was skinny as well—almost too skinny. The girl was in a hospital gown. "Perhaps this girl ran away from the hospital and became exhausted." The woman knelt down to pick up the girl.

Suddenly, another ANBU operative jumped down beside her. "Komachi, what did you find?" Judging from the voice, the person was male. Komachi turned to face her comrade, who wore a bird mask to hide his identity. The man looked down at the ground. "A kid…? From the hospital…? What's she doing way out here?"

"I'm not sure, Towa…" The woman faced the child again. She picked up the girl with extreme gentleness. "She has no injuries that I can see, and she is not dead either."

"I should report this to Lord Hokage." Towa nodded his head; Komachi nodded in agreement. "You take the child back to the hospital."

_Ba-Bump… Ba-Bump… Ba-Bump_

"Matte…! I think she's about to wake up! I can feel her heartbeat increasing." Komachi's voice caused Towa to halt his jump. The woman set the girl back on the ground. The two ANBU operatives stared intensely at the girl's closed eyes. For a few quiet moments, the girl did not move. "I guess… she's not wak-"

The girl's eyelids suddenly shot open, revealing blue eyes. The girl sat up coughing and looking hysterical. "Sas-Sasuke-kun, I lo-love you…!" she choked out. Behind their masks, the two ANBU operatives looked incredulous. Sweat drops slide down the back of their heads as the girl fell back again with a pink blush on her face. "O-Oh… Sasuke-kun…"

"Hey…!" Towa's voice caused the girl to sit up again. She stared at the two for a moment. "Why are-" The girl screamed bloody murder. "_Ahh_…! Shut her up, Komachi!" The cat-masked female nodded silently.

The woman put both hands on the girl's shoulders. Unceremoniously, she began to shake the girl harshly until the screaming stopped. She released the girl, who fell back again in exhaustion. "Not what I meant, but okay…" Towa muttered.

"Little girl," Komachi ignored her comrade. Blue eyes wearily turned to the female. "Why are you here?"

"You're… You're in ANBU, aren't you?"

"Answer the question, girl!" Towa sounded slightly irritated.

"Why are you here?! This is my room in case you haven't noticed!" The girl glared at the two, convinced that they had broken in.

"In case _you_ haven't noticed, we're outside!" Komachi retorted. Kids today had not an ounce of respect for their elders. The girl begrudgingly looked around and noticed that they were right. "What's your name?"

"My name is Uchi-" the girl huffed. "I mean, my name is Haruno Sakura."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Mayu panted heavily. Sweat ran down her face, arms, and legs. Her eyesight was beginning to become blurry. She was very tired. The urge to faint was almost too much to bear. Even so, she sank into a defensive stance, waiting for her sensei to come at her yet again. _"Aw man… Anko-sensei is mad again today."_ Mayu's knees trembled and threatened to buckle underneath her. Over the training period, Mayu had come to discover that the intensity of the training varied, depending on Anko's mood.

"Oi…! What's the matter with you? You look like you're gonna pass out at any second!" Anko's voice called over the young kunoichi.

_"Maybe because I am…!"_ The girl knew better than to say that out loud, though. It was no secret that the purple-haired woman was sadistic.

"You think Uchiha Sasuke's gonna take it easy on you just because you look pathetic, huh?!" Anko yelled across the field. The woman dashed towards Mayu with two kunai in each hand.

"He won't have to!" With newfound vigor, the young ninja raced towards her sensei. Anko smirked, and then threw two of the kunai. Without slowing, Mayu moved from side to side to dodge the deadly weapons. Again, the older kunoichi threw two kunai. Mayu reached into her pouch. She pulled out three shuriken and threw them towards the oncoming kunai. The weapons collided, but the third shuriken continued to whizz towards Anko.

Without stopping her dash, the older kunoichi formed hand signs. "**Striking Snake Jutsu**!" Multiple snakes shot out of her sleeve. One of the snakes took the hit of the shuriken while the others loomed closer to Mayu who had not stopped. The girl shuddered lightly, and then took to the air. The brown snakes only followed after her. Again, the girl pulled out shuriken, one for each snake head. She knew them down, pinning all of the snakes to the ground. One snake, however, evaded the shuriken and succeeded in wrapping its body around Mayu. "**Fire Style: Dragon Fire Jutsu**!"

Green eyes grew wide. _"She's trying to kill me…!" _Mayu dug deep into her weapon's pouch and pulled out a kunai. She quickly slashed at the snake's body as the flames moved closer. Mayu flung her body back to avoid the flames that had shot past not a moment after she had gotten out of the way. She fell towards the ground. As she passed her teacher, she threw more kunai and shuriken at her. Anko twisted her body, successfully eluding the weapons.

The two females dropped to the ground, both panting. Ashes fell to the ground all around them as well. "I'm… surprised… you didn't… use any… jutsu…" Anko breathed heavily.

"That's because… you… said… not to…" Mayu wheezed.

"Oh yeah…!" Anko grinned. Mayu collapsed at her teacher's words. "Nice job by the way. You can take a ten minute break, and then we'll-"

Anko was interrupted by a puff of smoke. A man had appeared in between the two. He looked up and held his hand out. "Black snow…?" He sounded confused. The shock wore off and Anko, angrily, turned her head from the man.

"Snake ashes," she corrected, causing the man to blanch.

"Iruka-sensei…?! What are you doing here?" Mayu sat up. She blinked at him. She hadn't seen him since the second stage of the chuunin exam ended. In all honesty, he had left right before the preliminaries began.

"It's good to see you, too." The scarred man smiled lightly. Mayu smiled sheepishly. "Actually, the Hokage would like to see you."

"The Hokage…?" Mayu repeated, dumbly.

"What's Hokage-sama want with this brat?" Anko asked, still not looking at Iruka. She glared at a tree, clearly miffed by Iruka's presence.

The chuunin noticed this, but was confused. He cleared his throat and turned his attention back to Mayu. "I do not know for certain why he wants to see you, Sakura, but he said that it was urgent." The young kunoichi blinked, and then groaned. The thought of moving was very unappealing at the moment. Despite this, she stood. It must be important if the Hokage wanted to see her, right?

"I have to go back to teaching since my break's over, but please try to make it there in under five minutes, okay, Sakura, Anko-san?" Iruka performed hand signs, preparing to leave. Mayu gave an affirmative nod. Anko merely scoffed. "See ya around." He disappeared the same way he had appeared.

Anko grumbled something under her breath, causing the younger kunoichi to look her way. "Do you not like Iruka-sensei?" The woman glared at her. "Okay, forget I asked. Anyway, let's get going. Hopefully, my body can withstand the journey." Anko rolled her eyes. The girl was acting as if she was about to run a hundred miles. Her training was not that hard! Orochimaru had been worse when he had trained her. The two females bounded off. Brown eyes stole a glance at the girl. Why would Orochimaru ever give _her_ the curse mark, anyway? Sure, she was talented, but… it just seemed too weird. Unless… Anko's eyes grew wide.

"_Did he know from the beginning that this girl could copy bloodlines?"_ The woman frowned. _"No, that can't be it. When Sakura used that ability on that Hyuga, he looked just as surprised as everyone else. But then why…?"_ Anko bit her lip in frustration. _"You'd think he go for that Uchiha, but… or maybe he did. Sakura does seem like one of those types who would risk her life for those she cares about."_ Out of the corner of her eye, Anko continued to watch her temporary student. It was only a week and a half left until the chuunin exam started up again, and she still had so much to teach her. It was surprising that Anko actually wanted to teach her now more than ever. Mayu was a good student and she was willing to learn anything… Anything besides snakes, that is. The girl had openly refused to use snakes when she fought. She wasn't necessarily afraid, just had an extreme dislike for them. Anko mentally shrugged. Mayu was strong enough without them. But if she really wanted to defeat the number one rookie, she would have to get stronger than she was already. _"I hope this little meeting doesn't take too long."_

Mayu stopped; Anko did the same. They had reached their destination, which was outside of the window of the Hokage's office. Mayu inwardly sighed. Anko had this weird thing with doors. Always, she would use the window to enter a building. Luckily, the Hokage seemed to know about Anko's antics and opened the window already. Before the two entered, Anko bluntly told her student that this counted as her break time. "What…?!" was her response. The woman whacked her over the head to stop further complaining. She then hopped in the building. Mayu smiled before following her.

Sarutobi swiveled around in his chair. "_Ah_, right on time," he said. He was secretly glad he decided to open the window this morning. The two girls walked around the desk, causing the old man to spin back around to face them.

"May I ask why we're here, Hokage-sama?" Mayu asked politely. She did not want to get hit in the head again for rude behavior. Sarutobi nodded his head. Mayu guessed that the meeting was really formal seeing as how the Hokage didn't have his hat on.

"Tell me… What is your name?" His question threw the young kunoichi off. She gave a wary glance towards her sensei. Anko just gave her look that told her to answer anything he asked. Perhaps, he was finally starting to become senile…? Mayu cleared her throat as she turned back to her Kage.

"My name is Haruno Sakura, sir."

"Is that so…?" Sarutobi stared intensely at the young girl. Mayu shifted nervously under his gaze. Inside, she was beginning to panic a little. What was with that suspicious tone in his voice? "Tell me, Haruno-san, how has your training been?"

The girl instantly perked up. "My training is going very well, sir. Anko-sensei is a wonderful teacher and I can actually feel myself getting stronger under her tutelage." What she said made Anko swell up with pride. It wasn't every day that someone complimented her. And when they did, it was usually out of fear. Sarutobi chuckled. He could hear the admiration in the girl's voice.

"Tell me about the fire jutsu you've been working on, if you don't mind," he requested. Mayu assumed that Anko had been the one to tell the Hokage that she was trying to master. The woman also probably told him about her fire affinity.

"I'm having trouble with that," Mayu admitted. "The jutsu calls for the chakra of past masters, but I don't really know the past masters, so… only my chakra is used, meaning it's probably not as big as it's supposed to be." Anko looked at her pupil in surprise. Mayu had never practiced that jutsu in her presence, so the woman had forgotten about the jutsu. She must have practiced using it outside of training. But that would mean that the girl wasn't getting enough sleep. Anko narrowed her eyes. She would have to have a little talk with the girl.

"_Hm_… I believe I can help you with that," Sarutobi said.

"Really…? How are you gonna do that?" Mayu was hit upside the head.

"Don't sound like you're suspicious of him!" Anko scolded. The younger kunoichi glared at her sensei as she rubbed her head.

"All in due time…" Sarutobi's voice diverted the girl's attention. "But for now, there is someone who I would like you to meet."

There was a sudden knock at the door, causing Mayu's head to turn. _"Someone he'd like me to meet...?"_ The knocking came again, slightly louder than before.

"Yes, come in," Sarutobi allowed the guest to open the door. Into the room stepped a girl with long dark hair. Blue eyes blinked at the occupants of the room. The guest had on a simple red shirt on, as well as white shorts that ended mid thigh. The girl was shinny, so skinny that her bones seemed to almost push against her light brown skin.

Mayu winced when she realized what was happening. She turned her head slightly to look at Sarutobi. The old man had a knowing look on his face. He _knew_...! This whole time, he knew! The girl turned back around to face the 'mirror.' The girl's blue eyes grew to an unimaginable size. _"That… doesn't seem good…"_ Mayu smiled nervously. "Hey…"

"MY _BODY_…!" The girl shouted and pointed a finger. "WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO TO ME?!"

"Uh…" Anko stood by looking quite confused. "_Your_ body…?"

"Where'd those muscles come from?! And what's with those _clothes_?!" The girl continued to screech. Mayu frowned. They happened to be _excellent_ clothes to train in. So what if they weren't the lastest fasions? "How the hell am I supposed to win Sasuke-kun over looking like a boy?!"

"Trust me, I didn't have anything to do with you looking like a ten-year-old boy," Mayu grumbled to herself.

"What was that, you body snatcher?!"

Mayu bristled.

"Hokage-sama…" Anko slowly turned to her leader.

"_Ah_, yes…" Sarutobi began. "The girl you have been training is actually an imposter." Anko fixed a glare on her student, who looked guilty.

"An imposter…?!"

"Yes, but calm down, please. I assume that that is your real body, yes?" Sarutobi motioned towards the blue-eyed girl. A reluctant nod was given. "I thought as much. Now, again, I ask you… What is your name?"

Hesitation was evident in the girl's eyes. She bit her lip. She could feel two pairs of eyes glaring at her. Anko was most likely pissed that she'd been lied to this whole time. The other was definitely because her body was stolen from her. "My name… My name is Ishikari Mayu." The words finally surfaced. The Hokage nodded as his head as if his qualms had been confirmed.

"And the one behind you?" he asked. Mayu tilted her head towards the ground. It was over. This crazy adventure she had was now over. She would no longer be on Team 7. She might even be banned from ever being a ninja. After all, she had been lying to nearly everyone. Mayu fiddled with hands that did not belong to her.

"Haruno… Haruno Sakura," Mayu stiffly answered. A smug '_humph_' was heard behind her. "But I-" She tried to explain herself, but the Hokage raised hand, stopping her from speaking.

"I have not asked a question, Ishikari-san. Please refrain from speaking until my question is asked." Mayu swallowed hard. The authority in his voice was something she'd never heard before. Sarutobi cleared his throat. "Now, how long have you been in Haruno-san's body?" Mayu waited a moment before replying.

"I have been in Sakura's body since the morning the newly made genin were assigned their squad leaders."

Sakura decided to speak up. "Hey, that's right! The last thing I remember is going to bed. I remember setting my headband on my desk the night I first got it!" The girl stomped up next to Mayu. "You must've come into my room in the middle of the night and stolen my body for your own selfish reasons!" It was weird having yourself glare at you. It was also weird to glare at yourself, as Mayu soon realized.

"I didn't willingly take your body! Who in their right mind would _want_ to?!"

"What is that supposed to mean, you bit-"

"Silence…!" The two girls turned to the Hokage. He was not giving them a happy look.

The two settled down and stood up straight. "Gomen…" Mayu muttered. She stared down at the floor again.

"So you're telling me that you've been living as Haruno Sakura since the genin graduated?" A nod was given as the answer. "And… Are you a ninja of Konoha or are you from another village?"

"I guess I'm from another village, sir—I'm not an enemy, though!" Mayu explained. "I do not know how it happened, but I woke up in the body of Sakura. This isn't my fault…"

Sarutobi looked confused for a fleeting moment. _"Could it be that she has lost her memories?"_ He frowned. _"To think she would go to such lengths…"_ The Hokage sighed lightly. "Does anyone else know of this?" Mayu opened her mouth to answer, but then quickly shut it. Was it right to tell the truth. Sasuke could get in serious trouble for not reporting his discovery. "Speak up, now, child."

"_Um_… My teammate—well, I guess he isn't _really_ my teammate—Uchiha Sasuke knows that I am not really Sak-"

"Sasuke-kun's on my team?! Hell yes!" Sakura cheered. "Take that, Ino-pig!" Sarutobi cleared his throat and looked at the girl through narrowed eyes, which caused Sakura to calm down. The Hokage turned his attention back to Mayu.

"Uchiha Sasuke knows about you, does he?"

"Yes, but please don't penalize him…! I begged him not to tell anyone—and even then, he interrogated me to make sure I wasn't an enemy! I'll take full responsibility, sir." The entire room was quiet. This only added to Mayu's nervousness. On a lighter note, the peace was delaying the inevitable. Sakura, however, was getting annoyed with the silence.

"Are you going to punish her or not, Hokage-sama? She stole my body and made people believe that she was me—except Sasuke-kun, of course! He probably realized it wasn't me right away. Sasuke-kun is amazing like th-"

"Shut up…!" Anko shouted. The girl's mouth instantly closed. The woman looked as scary as her worse nightmares.

"Ishikari-san… I won't punish you because you are merely misinformed," Sarutobi announced, which caused a 'what?!' to come from Sakura. Mayu only looked confused. "I have come to realize that you have… lost memories from the past." Mayu looked even more confused. "You are an Ishikari clan member. You are one of two that are left in the world." Mayu's mouth dropped open. Anko could practically hear her brain melting. "Perhaps it will help if you read this…" The Hokage pulled open a desk drawer. He pulled out one scroll. He held it out to Mayu. She girl walked forward and took the scroll from Sarutobi's hand.

Mayu's eyebrows knitted together as she stared at the scroll in her hand. On the scroll, it read Ishikari… but the characters were English. What in the world, she thought as she peeled back the paper. Green eyes grew wide in shock. All of it was English characters—no, it was actually Spanish. Her father had been quick to teach her that language before her twelfth birthday. She had asked him why, thinking it was a complete waste of time. After all, she had already learned the English language. He had told her it was to so that she could receive a better job. She supposed it made sense. Usually, parents wanted their children to be better than they were. Mayu concentrated on the words, trying to remember what she had learned from her father.

_Mayu, if you are reading this message, I, unfortunately, am no longer in the _

_world of the living. For quite some time now, I have had my suspicions of the Uchiha._

_If you are reading this, Mayu, then what I feared has come to pass._

_The Uchiha have betrayed us all._

_I have sent you away to protect you._

_But as you're reading, you're most likely confused._

_Using the forbidden jutsu cost me my life and your memories._

_There is a word that will trigger your all your memories._

_You, my daughter, are the last in your generation and you must continue the legacy._

_Please forgive me._

_I love you dearly, Mayu, and I wish you the best._

_-Ishikari Mayuka_

Mayu took a pause. She didn't understand the letter at all. This woman was calling herself her mother. But her mother is, and always will be, Ishikari Sheena… And what did the Uchiha clan have to do with anything? Her teammate—ex teammate—had come to mind when the Uchiha clan was mentioned. There had to be some sort of mistake. There had to be another girl with the same name. Mayu wasn't even from around here—not even from this realm, really.

Green eyes scanned over the words again, trying to find some type of loophole. There had to be one! This letter could not have been addressed to someone that was not even born in Konoha. Finding no excuse, Mayu sighed. _"Okay… It says there's a trigger word… If nothing happens when I read it, then I'm obviously not who this woman thinks I am."_ She bit her lip in anticipation as her eyes slowly traveled across the page.

_Nana_

_"Seven…?" _Mayu tilted her head to the side, clearly confused. She shrugged. She wasn't getting anything from that, so like she had first thought, there was another Ishikari Mayu in Konoha. The Hokage was the one that was misinformed. She felt confident that this woman was talking about someone els-

The scroll dropped from the girl's hands.

Sarutobi, as well as Sakura and Anko, watched the girl's eyes grow wide. The girl's body trembled as she reached up and clutched her head. Her pupils expanded and minimized at speeds above normal. Her other hand reached up to grab her head. Anko reached out to her imposter student. "Hey… Are you alri-" The woman's question was interrupted by a deafening scream. The sudden scream caused Anko to stumble back. Sakura, bewildered did the same. The Hokage, however, chose to look at the screaming girl with indifference. Getting nine years of memories back was no laughing matter. Being the leader, he must remain calm.

"No…! St-Stop… No more…!" Mayu screamed, shaking her head, causing the pink tresses to move to and fro. Frantically, Anko looked to her leader for help.

"Hokage-sama…! Are we just going to stand here and do nothing?!" she questioned. Sure, the girl had lied about her identity, but that did not change the fact that the woman had become fond of Mayu. Allowing this to happen—whatever it was—was eating her up on the inside.

"Be calm, Anko-san…" His composed voice was heard over the screaming. "She needs this. She needs to realize that she is of this village. She needs to know everything about her life, her birth, and her heritage. This is the only way." Anko clenched her teeth, but did not say another word. She stared back at her student, feeling helpless.

After a few more minutes of none-stop screaming, the girl finally stopped. Her green eyes—glazed over—stared lifelessly ahead. Her arms slowly fell back to her sides. Without loosing the blank look, tears freely cascaded down her cheeks. "Hey… What's wrong with her?" Sakura held a thumb up to her lip. Sarutobi closed his eyes and sighed. It was done. Ishikari Mayu is once again apart of the Village Hidden in the Leaves.

The girl's legs shook, and finally she fell over. Anko caught her before her back hit the floor. "Hey, kid, are you alright?" The older kunoichi gently shook her. The tears did not stop falling. "Hey, pull yourself together, already…! I didn't train a weakling, now, did I?!" The young kunoichi's eyelids slowly revealed clear green eyes.

"Itachi…" Mayu murmured. Anko's own brown eyes widen. She couldn't have meant… Uchiha Itachi, could she? Anko had heard of the genius of the Uchiha clan. The kid had graduated from the Academy at age 7, mastered the Sharingan at age 8, passed the chuunin exam at age 10, and lastly becoming an ANBU captain at age 13. Soon after becoming a captain, he snapped and deserted the village. Uchiha Itachi had become a missing ninja to Konoha.

Anko turned her head towards Sarutobi, wanting some answers. The old man stood up from his chair, causing Sakura's attention to be diverted towards him. "Help her up, Anko-san," he ordered. The woman obliged with a nod of her head. Anko pulled Sakura's body to its feet. Shaking, the girl managed to keep upright. The Hokage walked around his desk and stood in front of Mayu. "Now that you regained your memories, I have a few more things to inform you of." The young kunoichi slowly nodded.

"Hai, Hokage-sama…" she whispered.

Without taking his eyes off of Anko and the girl residing in Sakura's body, he spoke. "Haruno-san, you may now leave." Sakura looked stunned. She began to protest, but was immediately interrupted. "You may return when I am finished with this girl. Leave now." Sakura frowned, but did as she was told. She slowly left the room, and closed the door behind her. "Anko-san…" Sarutobi began once he was sure Sakura was out of hearing range. "You are aware of this girl's unique ability to copy an advanced bloodline, correct?" The woman nodded.

"To some extent… She hasn't used it since her battle with that Hyuga."

Sarutobi nodded, and then began again. "This girl is from a secret clan, known as the Ishikari clan. Similar to the Yamanaka clan, this family has the ability to inhabit the body of another. When they return to their own body, they are able to use the abilities of the one who they switched places with. Over the years, the Ishikari's jutsu has evolved to the point where they could also copy kekkei genkai. As you saw in her preliminary battle, the appearance also changes." Anko nodded at the clarification. "When the First established this village, the Ishikari was another clan who had agreed to build the village. Because of their abilities and war, they were kept secret. During the first Ninja war, they aided us by becoming our last line of defense. It was thanks to their help that we were able to keep this village standing. The Second, afraid of enemy villages knowing, kept the clan in isolation. For a long time, they were hidden from the world." The old man sighed lightly. "Three years ago, they were discovered. Uchiha Itachi was the one to find them. Soon afterwards, the Ishikari clan was known to many members of the Uchiha clan." Sarutobi closed his eyes and frowned. "Soon after that… both clans were lost, leaving two members of each alive. Does that sound about right, Ishikari-san?" Mayu nodded her head.

"So then… she's just like Uchiha Sasuke. No wonder they seem so close…" Anko murmured, looking down at the girl.

"Ishikari-san, you have remembered, so… I'm sure that the fire jutsu won't be a problem," Sarutobi continued. "It is safe to assume that you know how to reverse the jutsu of this magnitude, yes?" Mayu slowly nodded. "Then you should switch your body back with Haruno-san as soon as-"

"Matte…!" Mayu suddenly snapped to attention, shocking both Anko and the Hokage. Green eyes looked desperate. "My match with Sasuke…! I can't miss that! I worked hard so far and I still want to fight him! If I switch bodies with Sakura, I won't get that chance because my body is so weak. I'll take any reprimand, but please let me continue with the chuunin exam in this body! Please, Lord Hokage!"

"Calm down, Ishikari-san. Of course, I meant _after_ the chuunin exam," Sarutobi assured. Mayu mumbled an '_oh_' before her head fell. "Now that you know the circumstances of your clan, do you still want to be a ninja? After all, Ishikari-san, there has only been _one_ official ninja of your clan."

"Yes, I would like to be a ninja." Mayu spoke without hesitation.

"Very well… This chuunin exam will determine what your ninja status will be," Sarutobi stated. "After the chuunin exam you will be placed on a team based on your abilities." Mayu opened her mouth to say something, but closed it. "Is there something you'd like to say?"

"… Not at the moment, Hokage-sama…"

The old man looked slightly surprised, but didn't say anything on the matter. "You may continue your training with Anko-san. I will speak with Haruno-san about her role." he said. "Dismissed." The two kunoichi nodded, and then left the way they had come, out of the window. Sarutobi sighed before heading towards the door. He now had to explain the situation to the real Haruno Sakura.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Sakura watched unfamiliar legs swing back and forth. She had been sitting in a chair in the main lobby of the Hokage building. Bored, she stared at her new body in mild fascination. Never before had she seen a person with this type of complexion. It almost seemed aberrant to her. At first, she didn't believe it. Without even looking down at the body, she confidently denied that someone had stolen her body. After a few minutes of bickering with the Hokage's helper, the old man finally ordered him to bring a mirror. There was no more arguing after that.

Sakura's flawless body had transformed overnight. Brown skin had replaced hers. Deep blue eyes had replaced sparkling green orbs. And the body type… Sakura looked physically sick! Not to mention the ever present feeling of fatigue… Even Ino's body didn't look like this, and the blond had gone on several diets to impress Sasuke. _"Sasuke-kun…"_ Sakura sighed in bliss. He had known it wasn't her all along. They were even on the same team together. The Uchiha was so amazing. He must've have secretly watched her, memorizing her actions and personality. That's the only way he could have known his true love was a fraud! _"Oh, Sasuke-kun, you really do love me!"_ Sakura almost squealed at the very thought.

Someone cleared their throat, causing Sakura to jump from her chair. The Hokage was watching with one eyebrow raised. The girl flushed in apparent embarrassment. She hoped that her leader did not see grinning like a maniac and punching the air in victory. Sometimes, Sakura would just lose herself in her own little world. She giggled uneasily before bowing to her leader. Sarutobi nodded at her sign of respect. "Haruno-san, as I've explained before, your body is under the control of another person," he began. Sakura vehemently nodded her head with a frown.

"Will you be punishing that phony?!" she asked, heatedly. "And when am I getting my body back?" Sakura had a lot of work to do to get her body back to normal. That girl had screwed up her lovely appearance. There were bruises, scratches, and bandages all over! And her long, beautiful hair had been a mess! It looked as if she hadn't washed it at all today, and Sakura never went without a day of washing her hair several times, so it could smell nice for her Sasuke-kun. And she somehow had to make those ugly male muscles disappear.

The Hokage narrowed his eyes. "No, I will not be punishing, Ishikari-san." Sakura was about to protest again. Why should she not get punished?! The Hokage, however, interrupted before a single word could be uttered. "As she said before, Haruno-san, she did not willingly take your body."

"And you believe her?!"

"Ishikari-san is a fellow ninja of this village. You dare to try to get your comrade into trouble?" Sakura frowned at his harsh question. How was she supposed to know she was a kunoichi? It wasn't like there was a headband on her. "This current situation is the result of a training accident. Ishikari-san woke up in your body without any memories of what had happened, that is all." Sakura frowned lightly, not liking the justification. It all sounded way too shady for her taste. But never mind that…

"When is she going to reverse the jutsu? I wanna see me team!" Sakura smiled in glee. She really did not care about the one other team member, or the sensei for that matter. As long as Sasuke-kun was there, she would be in high spirits. The Hokage sighed, causing the girl's joyful attitude to deflate.

"Actually, Haruno-san, you will remain in this body until the chuunin selection exam is over," he told her. Sakura gapped at him in surprise. The chuunin exam had already started?! Sure, the Hokage had told her earlier that it had been awhile since the graduation, but had it really been this long?! She had missed the chuunin exam, which means she wasn't going to take it this time around… Oh, well, it sounded hard, anyway.

"So I'm supposed to stay in this body until it's over?! That's not fair at all!" Sakura complained. The Hokage seemed to ignore her complaints.

"You will remain in this body for the rest of the month. While in this temporary body, you will eat and exercise to return the health that was lost." He continued, locking his fingers behind his back. "Also while in this body, you will not communicate with anyone you know. Family, friends, fellow ninja—you will not speak with them if you come into contact with them." Sakura made a small sound of dissatisfaction, but that was it. The Hokage's orders were absolute, after all. She hesitantly asked how long the limit was. "There is about two more weeks in this month. The person who will be taking care of you for these two weeks is currently waiting for you at the Ichiraku stand. I assume you know where it is?" Sakura nodded. "Very well, then. The person that will watch over you for the time being—her name is Mariko. You will address her as Mariko-sensei because she will teach you things that you are supposed to know already." The girl nodded again, albeit, unhappily. Months of missing training kind of sucked… Sakura hoped she wouldn't have to repeat anything from when she was in the Academy. "Mariko-san will give you a forehead protector and the standard ninja sandals. She will show you to the apartment you will live in. The apartment is already stocked with things you will need. Remember, Haruno-san, this is only temporary, so please try not to damage the apartment or cause trouble. Ishikari-san will be living there after you two switch bodies again."

"I understand clearly, Hokage-sama," Sakura responded. Inwardly, she grinned with malice. Damaging the apartment was the least of 'Ishikari-san's' troubles. How dare some random stranger take her body, her life, her _Sasuke-kun_?! It was unforgivable! Sakura coughed to settle the anger that had suddenly bubbled up. "Am I free to go meet Mariko-sensei, now, Hokage-sama?" she asked, politely.

"Yes, you may go." The Hokage turned to go as he said this. Sakura bowed to his retreating back. Once the old man disappeared around the corner, Sakura's smile turned into a smirk. Sure he said not to talk with them, but that doesn't mean she had to not see them. Ino had probably taken the chuunin exam, but failed miserably, so she would most likely be in her family's flower shop. She would go see her first. Sasuke would probably be training, so she would try to find him next. Afterwards, she would try to visit her mother to see how she was doing. With a determined nod, Sakura—in the body of Ishikari Mayu—walked out of the building.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Sorry for the wait, faithful reviewers. The holidays are really hard to work through, especially with the numerous tests the school's has us taking. So I finally got chapter nine done. Like I said before, it's short. So, as you've read, Sakura's back. If you haven't noticed already, the summary said that the title will change. Sakura's presence is the reason for this change. Also, I believe that the rating will change as well because of her appearance. In later chapters, please remember that Sakura never got the experience she did when she was with Team 7, so she still will be immature.

One more thing… I sorta kinda lied about the next chapter. I told you that I was finally going to start the chuunin exam again… That's not gonna be happening yet. I want to write _one_ more chapter before it begins again, just one more, I promise you!

Next time: _Thriller_

I'm looking forward to seeing your amazing reviews!


	10. Thriller

She ran. She ran, never stopping to catch her breath. She did not dare turn around to see if her pursuer was still after her. Sweat quickly skidded off her face as she tried to distance herself further and further away from her predator. Maniacal laughter suddenly filled her ears, causing her to gasp. The laughter sounded as if it surrounded her. Gritting her teeth together, she tried to run even faster. The screams of her teammates haunted her mind. She grabbed her head, still running, and pleaded for the screams to go away. Her hands smeared the blood of her teammates on her face and hair. She could not save them, even if she had _wanted_ to. She had been too scared to move. Too scared to think... Too scared to _die_...

"And where do you think you're going?" A malicious voice spoke. The girl's eyes snapped open in horror. Her hunter had caught up with her. A blur whizzed by her, startling the girl. She tripped over her own foot and fell to the ground. Her chin painfully slid against the ground. Mud caked onto her chin and blood started seeping through the small cuts. The girl slowly raised her head, afraid of what her black eyes would see. Her dark orbs were met with vicious cat-like eyes. She was staring into the face of a giant tiger. Her lip trembled as she realized that two other giant tigers were there as well. There was no escaping her fate. "You didn't really think you weren't going to suffer the same fate as your pathetic teammates, did you?" The same malicious voice questioned with a dark chuckle.

The kunoichi slowly turned to meet her seeker. As she turned, her hands reached into the holster on her leg. She discreetly pulled out three senbon. She heard the footsteps come closer. Her eyes widen, and then she hurriedly threw them towards where her attacker was. She saw the smirk on her assailant's face. The ninja quickly disappeared—dodging the needles—only to reappear mere inches away from the girl's face. Her chin dropped. A strangled gasp broke away from her throat. Her tracker tittered. Dark green eyes stared nastily into scared black ones. "No… I—I—I … do-don't want to di-die…" The girl's voice quivered.

Once again, the maniacal laughter filled her ears and caused the nervous trembles to begin again. The girl could feel the hot breath on her face. She closed her eyes. "After what you did to my teammate…?" It was a rhetorical question, not meant to be answered. "Oh no, Tsuchi Kin, you will die just like the rest of your team." A hand reached out and grabbed a fistful of Kin's long, black hair, causing the Sound kunoichi to wince in pain. Her killer laughed and pulled her off the ground. She could see the black curse mark spread across the face of her executioner. The impious grin on the Leaf kunoichi's face caused Kin to shake violently.

A new—familiar—dark chuckled caused Kin to look beyond her. A familiar smirk was sent her way. Kin weakly smiled. It was her savior. "Or-Orochimaru-sama…" she whispered. He had come to help her. Her lord and leader chuckled again. He turned his head slightly. He was looking at the Leaf kunoichi, not her.

"Are you finished?" he asked.

"Just about, my lord."

"Finish quickly… I have more important things to do."

Kin's eyes grew wide. What was her lord saying? Was he not going to save her from this fate? "Orochimaru-sama, please save me…!" Her pleas fell on deaf ears. Orochimaru turned his back on his own ninja.

"Save you…?" He, again, chuckled darkly. "You are merely a toy for her. Why would I take away her fun?" Kin stared at his back in disbelief. Orochimaru's body faded into black. All this time, she was only a pawn in his little game. Coming to this realization, the Sound kunoichi's body went limp. The green-eyed girl laughed again. She sarcastically tried to console her.

"Its okay, Kin-_chan_, I'm sure you're going to a better place…" With another laugh, the Leaf ninja effortlessly tossed Kin into the air. "Time to become dinner for my friends." A split second later, something heavy slammed into her body; she could feel claws digging into her back. Her front side hit a tree. She heard the cracking noise her nose made when it collided with the tree. It instantly started bleeding as she sank to the forest floor. Fangs pierced her skin. Kin screamed, feeling the blood gushing from her injuries. More fangs sliced open her skin, causing more shrieks of pain. The tigers tore away her flesh. The screaming stopped, and yet they continued to feast on her body. Surges of anger suddenly build up within the girl. One last thought passed through her mind before the world turned red and black.

"_Orochimaru… You bastard…!"_

--

Two eyelids shot open. A moonlit room greeted a pair of black eyes. Tsuchi Kin slowly sat up from her futon and pushed the covers from her body. She looked at her lap for a fleeting moment before gazing out of her window, towards the full moon. Her fingers curled into fists as her eyelids lowered. How could she have been so stupid? As soon at the curse mark appeared on that girl, Kin should have automatically known that Orochimaru had betrayed them. He had sent them to their _deaths_. Because she had trusted and had been loyal to the snake Sanin, Dosu had lost his arm. He would never been a ninja again--not a good one, at least. Zaku would also never be a ninja in his life time. Kin felt like she was the only one left. She was left alone… and it was all Orochimaru's fault.

She'd make him sorry. She'd become more powerful than he was and she'd kill him, slowly and painful for all the things he had done to her and her teammates. They had gone through so much for him and his cause, and yet he still treated them like dirt—less than dirt. She'd make him beg for mercy as she'd tear his arm off in the same way Dosu's had been. She'd cut out his tongue and then those hypnotizing eyes. She'd slice at his face and limbs, letting his blood stain that disgusting, pale skin. Her nails dug into her palms, leaving crimson, crescent-shaped marks. That son-of-a-bitch would die a horrible death.

A bitter smile appeared.

"Wishful thinking…" she murmured, letting her eyes drop from the sight of the moon. There was no way a mere genin could ever beat Orochimaru, a Sanin. He was powerful—too powerful, which was one of the reasons she had decided to follow him. She had felt that he was the only one who could protect her. Now, she realized that she needed protection from _him_. Kin's fingers suddenly slackened. "Maybe…" she whispered, but then shook her head. _"No, as soon as I say his name, they'll kill me for sure… Or would they?"_

A loud knocked caused Kin's head to turn to the door. It was Zaku. He was the only one left with one usable arm. Poor Dosu and Zaku… They wanted so badly to be put out of their misery. What was the point of living if they couldn't live as a ninja? That is what the two had told her earlier today. They had not even cared that their leader had betrayed him. "Wake your ass up, Kin!" Zaku's voice came through the door. "Orochimaru-sama wants to see us right now!" Kin narrowed her eyes, and then looked down. That tone in his voice—he sound happy, almost excited. The thought of doing something for that traitorous bastard caused him anticipation. And if she hadn't known any better, she would behave in the same way. After all, Orochimaru had succeeded in brainwashing them all, and causing them to solely depend on him and him alone. "Kin…! I said get your a-"

"I'll be there…! Just go on without me; I'll catch up soon!" It was a lie, of course. If she had gone to see Orochimaru, she would be too tempted to attack him. It was his fault that their team was nothing and useless. Grumbles came from the other side of the door, causing Kin's eyebrow to rise. Zaku muttered a 'fine' and left. Soon afterwards, the front door slamming indicated that the two had left. "Those poor bastards…" There was no way that Orochimaru wanted them all for a mission. That couldn't be it since two of the three were incapacitated. Orochimaru had to be up to no good, calling a useless team like that. Kin could only guess that he was going to throw them away as if they were… useless pawns.

The Sound kunoichi quickly stood, stripping herself of her sleeping attire, which was a simple white robe. She walked over the dresser and pulled out her clothes. After putting on her clothes, she made a grab for her forehead protector, but hesitated. Her fingers touched the metal plate, tracing the music note that was engraved there. The Sound had been home to her for many years… It was many long and painful years—and for what? Nothing… Nothing was returned for her unwavering obedience. She had been a fool for the past ten years. "No more…" Kin's fingers curled up. "NO MORE…!" She moved her fingers away from the headband as if she had been scorched. She pulled out a senbon from her weapon's pouch and jammed the end into the metal plate, which caused a dent. With effort, Kin dragged the senbon across the plate, creating a line across the music note. She pulled her senbon out of the plate and gazed at her handiwork. It wasn't too bad. The line looked a slightly wavy, but it proved its purpose. Kin laid out the headband, and then penetrated the skin of her cheek with the senbon—a few centimeters down from her eye to the beginning of her jaw. She winced as blood trickled out of the narrow line—which would become a scar—and dropped onto the headband. She turned, and headed for the window, leaving a small trail of red. It was as if she was crying blood. She opened her window, and then hopped on the ledge. With one last glance at her room, she leapt out and disappeared into the night.

Tsuchi Kin: Missing-nin of the Sound Village.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Sakura yawned loudly. She twisted _her_ body to get some of the knots out. She stretched, standing on tip-toes. Sleeping on the floor was not something she was used to. Thanks to her living arrangements at the time, Sakura had been sleeping on the floor for a week now. She would be glad when all this is over. She would return to her body and get to sleep in her nice, warm bed, instead of a futon. Yawning once more, Sakura walked away from her temporary bedroom and towards the small, cramped bathroom. Her real bathroom was much bigger than this! It was not fair that the Hokage stuffed her into this small vicinity. Her mother would have a heart attack if she ever found out where her daughter was.

After relieving herself, Sakura quickly washed her hands. She closed the door to the bathroom and headed towards the equally small kitchen. The girl couldn't cook many things, so the food items that were stocked had not been used at all. All Sakura had had for breakfast this past week was toast and butter, which was fine. Mariko-sensei would treat her to lunch and dinner. It was a precaution, coming from the Hokage. He had somehow found out that Sakura did not like to eat much, so he ordered it to make sure she was getting the proper nutrients. For the most part, Sakura was okay with this. That feeling of exhaustion had finally gone away, and she would walk a long distance without stopping to catch her breath.

Sakura grumbled something under her breath as the toaster popped out her bread. It was another pair burnt to a crisp. "_Jeez_…! How did mom use this thing?" The last time Sakura had used the toaster, it was pure luck that she had perfect toast come out. The girl took out the burnt pieces of bread, and then placed in another pair. Hopefully, if she watched it, they would come out alright. Without taking her eyes off the toaster, Sakura discarded the burnt slices. A few moments of intense staring later, smoke started to rise. Sakura forcefully pushed the toaster lever up, causing her perfectly toasted bread to pop out. She smiled. She was really starting to get the hang of it. Maybe _she_ could cook her mother breakfast sometime. Her mother would be so surprised!

Sakura giggled lightly as she placed the toast on a plate. "Better yet, I'll cook for Sasuke-kun! Since we're going to be on the same team, it'll be natural to make him lunch or breakfast!" The girl reached over to open the refrigerator. She pulled out the butter, closed the door, and then got out a knife. Still smiling over her fantasy, she spread the butter over her hot toast. Just as she took the first bite of her bread, a knock on her door, caused her head to turn. She blinked at the door, trying to figure out if she had just imagined it. Another knock caused the girl to scowl, and then take the bread from her mouth. She hoped it wasn't Mariko-sensei again. It was way too early.

Her blue eyes narrowed into slits as she moved towards the door. Another knock was heard, which only succeeded in bringing a stress mark to the girl's dark skin. "Keep your shirt on…!" she shouted as she opened the door. Blue eyes grew wide at what she saw. There, standing in her outside, was another blue-eyed person. He blinked, looking innocently surprised. Dark eyebrows knitted together in uncertainty. _"Naruto…?"_ Was that a Konoha headband around his head? Sakura could have sworn he failed the Academy exam.

The blond grinned. "Hey, sorry if I woke you up…!" His loud statement caused Sakura to look down at herself. She was still wearing her pink pajamas. She flushed in embarrassment. Great, the class idiot had seen her in an indecent state.

"What the hell do you want?!" Sakura grumbled, crossing her arms over her chest. She was slightly pissed that these boobs were bigger than her real ones. Naruto looked nervous as he continued to stare. Sakura's eyebrow twitched in irritation. "Well…?!"

"Well, I just wanted to see who my new neighbor was! My name is Uzumaki Naruto! Remember that name—one day, I'll be your Hokage!" His eyes sparked as he said this, but this only further irritated Sakura. The loser would always talk about his dream of being Hokage, which would never come true. He was so _annoying_! "You're my first neighbor. Everyone else moved away when I got here, so I came to say hi and welcome you to the neighborhood!" He raised his head with a pleasant smile on his face. Sakura glared. He was as annoying as ever. He hadn't changed a bit. But why is she just finding out now that Naruto was lived near this temporary apartment?

"Hey, how come I haven't seen you before?" She was breaking the rule and interacting with an old classmate, but it shouldn't matter. It was just Naruto.

"Oh, I'm training for the finals in the chuunin exam!" He pointed to his headband. "I am a ninja, after all!" His loud voice was not doing a lot of good so early in the morning… Wait…! Chuunin exam…?! This brat actually got into the finals? There must have been a lot of weak people. Damn, that means Sakura had missed her chance to defeat people and look strong in front of Sasuke. "Anyway, anyway…! What's your name?"

"Ha—Ishikari… Mayu…" She had almost forgotten. No one ever asked her, not even Mariko-sensei. But she wasn't much of a talker, anyway.

"_Ah_, that's a nice name!" His grinned seemed to grow bigger as he praised the name. It wasn't _that_ nice. Haruno Sakura was a _much_ better name… And _Uchiha _Sakura was even better. Sakura almost drooled at the thought. She quickly snapped out of it when Naruto spoke again. "You look like my age, so I hope we get along!"

"_Don't count on it, loser!"_ Sakura faked a smile. Naruto, not noticing, eased down on the grinning and smiled back.

"Well, I have to start training again!" He turned to go. "SEE YA AROUND!!!" He left Sakura, clutching her ears, trying to get the ringing to stop.

"That idiot…!" Sakura complained as she slammed the door. She huffed angrily. "Well, I guess it's only for another week. And since he's training-" She stopped to laugh at the thought. As if he could train enough to become a _chuunin_. Everyone knew he was dead last. "-I guess I won't be seeing much of him. Lucky me…!" She smiled as she walked back over to her breakfast. "Besides, I'm only here in the mornings, and don't come back until real late. Now that the stamina has increased again, I can start training in my ninja abilities." Mariko-sensei had told her earlier that she would teach her how to walk on water today. "Sasuke-kun's going to be so proud of me when I return to my body. I can hardly wait!" She bit into her breakfast again. It was time to start the new day. Only seven more days until the chuunin exam finals begin.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Tsuchi Kin gazed down at her reflection in the clear water. The water only looked blue and white because of the sky above. She touched the scar on her face. It had been a week since she had given it to herself. It had been one week—seven days—since she had abandoned her village and comrades. It had been one week since she had been in hiding. It was like the Forest of Death all over again. A finger slid up and down the scar. It had stopped hurting a few days ago. It acted as a simple disguise just in case Orochimaru did find her. It wasn't much of one, but then again the snake Sanin had yet to find her. Kin scoffed. He probably hasn't even come looking.

The missing-nin lied back on the grass and stared at the sky. It was a little before noon. She would go have to find something to eat soon. She had money, but she did not try to risk going back into the village. Orochimaru had spies everywhere, it seemed. For the first time in ten years, she had to fend for herself. Kin shook her head. _"Don't think like that!"_ she told herself. It's a good thing. This is a blessing. Being independent would mean she could be stronger. And she had to be.

But that was a hard thing to accomplish when she felt so hallow inside. Kin sighed as she closed her eyes. Hallow—she had been feeling this for the past week. She had been indecisive. She knew she couldn't stay in hiding forever, and she knew she couldn't just up and leave the village either. The Sound, by now, had surrounded the outside of the village or was in preparation of doing so. She would be killed on site, even with the disguise. To further add to the cover, Kin had changed clothes, and burned her old outfit.

She now wore simple dark pants that were rolled up just below her knees. The fabric of the pants was soft, yet strangely durable. And so was the dark blue t-shirt she wore. Her shoes were now regular black flats. They weren't as comfortable as her ninja sandals, but they had to do. She had stolen this outfit from a home near the hotel she had been staying in with her teammates. Her teammates…

The fourteen-year-old rolled over, onto her side. She watched the blades of grass sway in the wind with a frown on her face.

Kin assumed that Orochimaru had killed them. They had to be burning in hell right now. She hadn't seen the two the few times she _had_ ventured into the village. Orochimaru must've have done it that night she ran away. If she hadn't had that dream— that nightmare—then she'd probably be dead right now to. She had wanted to live. They—the fools—had wanted to die. If it would impress him, then they'd do it without a second thought. She hated fools like that. She hated herself more because she had been the same way ever since she had met the snake-user. It was not out of loyalty. It was out of fear, she realized. Fear is what kept her serving him. In reality, she could give a rat's ass what his _cause _was. As long as she had shelter, it didn't matter who she had served. How dim-witted she had been.

Kin's eyelids lowered until they closed completely, hiding her black spheres.

"How could anyone be more frightful than him…" she murmured. Her lips were pressed against her arm. She was thinking of that day in the Forest of Death. She never wanted to see eyes like that again. Horrible green eyes—they sent chills throughout her body whenever she thought of them. All that for one teammate…? Kin was sure that Zaku and Dosu would have never got angry like that if she was hurt—the bastards. Actually, no one from the Sound village would do that, unless it was for _him_.

"Well, well, well…" Kin's eyes snapped open in surprise. That voice… That dreadful voice… No, it couldn't be! The missing-nin sat up. "What do we have here? A lost, little, golden, bell…?" Kin's black eyes slowly met the eyes of the speaker. No… It was _her_. She stood in front of Kin with a sadistic smirk on her face. "Glad to see me again, Kin-chan…?" The missing-nin crawled backwards until her hand touched the water's surface. She was trapped. She could practically feel her heart in her throat. It hammered like a drum in her ears. "That wasn't very nice." The Leaf kunoichi feigned sadness. She then grinned. "Did you really think your little costume was going to stop me from finding you?" Those terrible green eyes looked at her in mock astonishment. "You even cut your long, pretty hair. What a waste… You could have died with it—you didn't have to cut it."

Kin _had_ cut her long hair. The length was now just below the base of her neck. She had managed to give herself bangs as well, mostly to cover the top of her eyes. But it proved to be pointless since her killer had realized who she was. "Please… Spare me…!" Her voice had barely been above a whisper.

"No." Her simple response caused Kin to quake.

"But I-" The Leaf kunoichi's hand shot out and grabbed her neck before she could finish her sentence. She forced Kin's head into the water, not giving the girl time to struggle. She was planning on draining her! Kin grabbed the girl's wrist, trying to get her to release her, but it was all futile. The girl's grip tightened around her esophagus. Kin couldn't breathe. Water rushed into her mouth and nose at alarming speeds. As she thrashed around, she briefly wondered why death was taking so long to come. It shouldn't have taken this long. Why couldn't her torture end? It was so painful. Kin felt her body slowly start to relax. Behind closed eyes, a beam of white light shot at her.

--

Kin sat up, breathing heavily. She felt sick to her stomach. Her head ached. Sweat ran down her face and slipped off her chin. She squeezed her eyes shut and grasped her head, trying hard to remove the green eyes from her mind. _"Damn it…!"_ Kin's teeth grind together in frustration. When were these nightmares going to stop? They were maddening, not to mention horrifying. Every time, she would die by the hands of that girl. Whether it was suffocation, poisoning, burning, drowning, being mauled by tigers, being thrown from a cliff, having kunai being stabbed repeatedly—death was always certain when that girl appeared in her dreams. _"Stupid dreams…"_

She had not even realized that she had once again fallen asleep. Kin sighed heavily. She laid her head back down on the soft… fluffy… pillow…? _"What the hell…?!"_ The girl bolted up and frantically looked away. She was no longer in a forest. She was no longer lying on grass. There was no longer a small pond near her. Instead, it looked as if she was in a room. It seemed as though she was sitting on a bed. But it couldn't be… _"Am I dreaming again?"_ Kin's eyesight became clearer with each passing second. Wherever she was, the atmosphere was warm, inviting… peaceful. She had _never_ felt this before. Just where the hell was she? She pushed the covers away from her body to see that her clothes had been replaced with a different set of attire.

Her body now donned an overly large, grey t-shirt that reached her just above her knees. Kin pulled up the shirt slightly to see what she had on under it. Shorts hugged her hips like a second skin. Kin's cheeks turned slightly red. She never really liked showing off her skin. She pushed the shirt back down, and then looked around the room again. It was essentially a clean room. There were clothes scattered in random places—like on a chair. The brown desk had papers and books layered on it. The table next to the bed also had a few books on it. There were two doors. Kin assumed that one of them was a closet, and the other was the exit. The room did not look in the least bit familiar to her eyes.

Hopefully she hadn't been captured. That conclusion did not seem plausible. The environment was much too _friendly_. If she had been captured by Orochimaru, then she would most likely be strapped down to a hard metal contraption and being tortured for her desertion. And the smell would have been atrocious because of past torture victims. The smell that invaded her nostrils was pleasant. Whatever it was, it smelled delicious. Kin's stomach gurgled in agreement. Outside, she could see that it was dark. The stars and moon illuminated the room. Someone must've have been cooking dinner.

Putting a hand over her rumbling stomach, Kin slowly slid her legs off of the security of the bed. She didn't want to leave the comforts of the bed, but her stomach was overpowering her need for relieve at the moment. It was also overpowering her sense of fear and uncertainty, she realized as she made her way over to one of the doors. Kin opened the door, and luckily it wasn't the closet. The smell of food had gotten stronger. The missing-nin stepped out into the hallway, which was lit up by lights that hung from the ceiling. Kin took hesitant steps forward, her hunger driving her. She could hear voices now. They were also unfamiliar, which she supposed was good.

As Kin moved down the hallway, she passed by other doors that were all closed. She was only somewhat curious, so she continued on, following her nose. The voices were getting louder as she drew closer to the end of the corridor. Kin could make out two different voices by now. One was male, the other was obviously female. The two voices sounded… fine, she presumed. She would have to face them—their voices were coming from the same room as the smell. With a gulp, Kin pushed opened the door, determined to get some food.

The two stopped talking and looked up at her. Kin broke out into a cold sweat. They were staring at her as if they were expecting her. The male—he looked fairly younger than she was. Judging from that headband, he was a ninja of Konoha. He had brown spiky hair, red, upside down triangles on his face—one under each eye—his black eyes were shaped like slits. The female, however, looked older, had bigger black pupils, had long dark, brown hair that was tied in a ponytail; a few strands of hair fell to the sides of her face. She also had two, upside down, red, triangles on her face. She smiled lightly. It was surprising to see a warm smile on someone's face—it looked genuine enough. The female did have a gentle face—maybe it was okay… "_Um_-"

"It's about time you came in here! We thought you passed out in the hallway, or something!" The male had interrupted her before she could start a sentence. He grinned, showing her longer than normal canines. They _had_ been expecting her! Did they know that she was standing outside the entire time? The room that the two were in was a kitchen. They were sitting at a table with—delicious looking—food in front of them. There was a third portion of food as well, which means someone had yet to arrive.

Kin's eyes shifted back to the boy. He was still grinning away as if she wasn't a stranger. He did seem familiar, but there was no name to match his face. Maybe she had seen him in the Forest of Death; he was a ninja, after all. And he looked like a genin. It suddenly struck her. She was in the home of Konoha ninja! Unconsciously, her body began to slowly retreat. "Don't just stand there, come join us," the female's soothing voice had brought Kin closer to the table somehow. She sat down at the table, in between the two—whoever they were. She fiddled with her hands in her lap. She didn't dare to even look at the food in front of her. "Well, aren't you going to eat? Your food is going to get cold." _Her_ food…? She hesitantly looked up at the girl—no, woman. She was still smiling. "My name is Inuzuka Hana, by the way."

Instead of devouring her meal—which is _really_ wanted to do—Kin finally spoke up. "Where am I? Why did you bring me here? Where are my clothes? Why are you feeding me? Who are you? Where did-"

"You sure do ask a lot of questions." The boy snickered. Kin glared at him, causing his snickers to become uneasy laughter until it stopped. The missing-nin turned back to the woman. She chuckled lightly.

"You are on the Inuzuka compound. I didn't bring you here, Kiba did-" she gestured towards the boy, but Kin kept her face on the speaker. "-Your clothes are hung up in my closet. I'm feeding you because it's been two days since Kiba found you, so you must be starving. Like I said, my name is-"

"What?! Two days…?! But that can't be it! I was-"

"I found you passed out at my secret training spot," Kiba, again, interrupted. It was starting to make her mad. Oblivious to this, he continued. "There were some bad mushrooms near your body, so I assume you ate them and got sick. Sis has been taking care of you since then." So they were siblings? That would explain why they both had the same markings. "What were you doing eating bad mushrooms, anyway?"

"It's all I had…" Kin grumbled, still glaring. "Brat."

Kiba returned the glare. "What was that? I didn't quite hear that over your growling stomach!" His spiteful remark caused Kin to flush. She had to _remember_ that these Konoha ninja were feeding her.

"Kiba…!" his older sister scolded. "That's not anyway to treat a guest!"

"Well, I made it! The least she could do is be thankful!" Kiba yelled back.

Before Hana could retort, Kin stood up. "I didn't ask you to treat me, nor did I ask you to bring me here," she said. Her eyes did not meet either one of them. "I will go now."

"Hey, wait…! I didn't say that you had to go!" Kiba shouted before she could turn. "Sit down and eat with us!" It was still for a few moments. Kin felt both pairs of eyes on her. It wasn't until her stomached rumbled again that she sat. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Kiba smile.

"Itadakimasu…" Kin muttered, picking up the chopsticks and the bowl in front of her. She would never admit that it tasted good out loud to his face. Complimenting him would be too embarrassing. A boy shouldn't cook this well.

"So you know our names… What's yours?" Kiba asked, trying to make conversation. Kin swallowed the lump in her throat. She had been eating way faster than she normally would. But then again, she normally would be fed on the daily basis. Kin set her bowl on the table. She wiped the rice from her face. "I mean, I've never seen you around before. Are you here to see the chuunin exam?"

"Sure, whatever." This vague answer caused Kiba to scowl at her. He asked for her name again. "I have no name." Kiba growled.

"Look…! I bring you to my home, the least you could do is answer my question!"

"I don't have to answer shit!"

"I dare you to say THAT AGAIN!"

"I. DON'T. HAVE. TO. ANSWER. SHIT!!"

"_Grr_… THAT'S IT!"

Hana sighed heavily. She picked up her cup and sipped on the hot tea. With uncaring eyes, she watched her younger brother and a complete stranger wrestle on the floor. She turned her attention to the table. Both of them had finished their meal. Kiba had always been a fast eater. The girl had been too hungry to show manners, so she had eaten quickly, too. She began to pick up their dishes, as well as hers. The two bumped into the table a few times, but Hana didn't mind. The veterinarian was so glad that her mother was out. But there was going to be hell to pay when she did arrive…

--

"This is all_ your_ fault…!" Kiba growled, angrily. Kin rolled her eyes as she watched the boy toss and turn. She was seated with her back against the wall. Her arms were folded over chest. Her legs were pulled up. Kiba was lying down at her feet. Kin _accidently_ kicked his side, causing him to glare at her.

"Excuse me…?! You're the one who lunged at me like some sorta beast!" Kiba glowered at her. Kin only turned her head away.

The two teens were being punished at the moment. Their punishment involved sleeping outside with the dogs. Well, not necessarily _with_ the dogs. It was more near the dogs, but it was still outside. The two had been cramped into one of dog houses. Apparently this dog house belonged to Kuromaru, Kiba's mother's partner. Tonight, he was sleeping in the warm house.

Inuzuka Tsume had come home while Kiba and Kin were fighting. She was beyond pissed. She had yelled out them for _hours_ after breaking the two up. A lot of glass had been broken in the mist of their fight, so Kin could understand why she'd been so angry. But yell for that long was just crazy…! Kin could see where Kiba got most of his traits from. Whether it was attitude or physical appearance, he'd definitely got them from her.

Kiba grunted and turned his back to the missing-nin. "You know, this wouldn't have happened if you would have just told me your name," he murmured, yawning. Kin was silent. Kiba sighed heavily. "Fine, be that way…"

"If I tell you my name… would you please shut the fuck up?"

"_Grr_…"

"My name is Tsuchi Kin."

"Tsuchi…? Wait a minute…!" Kiba turned around. Kin turned her head back around to face him. "You're that Sound kunoichi, who fought Shikamaru in the preliminaries, aren't you?" The missing-nin grumbled as she stared at her knees. "You look so different now. Why'd you cut your hair?"

"None of your business…! Now shut up, already. I'm trying to sleep!" Kin put her head down and closed her eyes, not waiting for a retort. She did hear the Konoha shinobi move around. What the hell was he doing? She had thought he would go to sleep by now. Curious, she lifted her head and opened her eyes. That proved to be a big mistake… Kiba's face was mere centimeters from her own, and… he appeared to be sniffing her. It took a few moments to register. "WHAT THE FU-" Kin had reeled back, but because of this, she banged her head against the wall of the dog house. Kiba started laughing hysterically. "Shut up, you damn mutt!" The missing-nin tenderly rubbed her head. That had hurt much worse than it should have because she had bitten her tongue.

"_Hahaha_…! That was just like when you lost to Shikamaru!" Kiba held his stomach. He was now sitting up like Kin was. The missing-nin kicked him again, but it did not stop the laughter. Kin gritted her teeth. Damn these brats for making her look like a fool! She wished that she had kept her weapons. She wasn't bitter about her match with that lazy bum of a ninja—she had not been feeling well, after all—but it didn't need to be brought up. "So… Why'd you cut your hair?" His mirth finally stopped.

"Would you just shut up?!"

"I can't help it! I'm bored!" Kiba indignantly replied. Kin sighed miserably. There was no way she was going to get any sleep at this rate. This Kiba was such a brat. "Tell me why you cut your hair."

"I cut it to disguise myself from a rapid snake and a couple of tigers." Kin deadpanned. Kiba blinked in surprise, and then cracked a smile.

"You've got a pretty weird way of telling the truth."

"What is that supposed to mean? How do you know I'm not lying?"

"I've got this!" He pointed to his nose proudly.

"You're a fucking retard…"

Ignoring that, Kiba asked another question. "So what…? You're like… homeless now?" Kin glared.

"None of your business, fleabag!"

"I don't have fleas."

"Could've fooled me! You keep scratching your head as if you do!"

"I just do that when I'm thinking!"

"Yeah right!"

"… You are so hard to talk to! You're as shriveled up as an old man!"

"That's what she said…"

"What…?"

Kin flushed in embarrassment. Did that crude joke really just come from her mouth? Man, if Zaku wasn't dead already, she would kill him. He used to say that all the time. No matter what was said, no matter who was present. One time, Orochimaru had been talking to Kabuto. He was referring to the report Kabuto had given him when he said 'Why is it so long, Kabuto?' Zaku was quick to say 'That's what she said!' Orochimaru was very upset. Kabuto had been drinking something and had spurted the liquid right in the snake Sanin's face. Hilarity ensued. That was one of the rare times that Team Dosu had laughed together.

"Go-Gomen…" her voice had cracked. Her eyes stung with an unfamiliar familiarity. It was something she hadn't done in a very long time. Kin clamped a hand over her mouth to prevent the strangled sob from coming out. She was crying. After all these years, she was crying. She did not love Zaku or Dosu, nor did she think of them as friends, but… they were gone. They would be no more arguments, no more jokes, no more smirks—no more… comfort.

Kin swallowed a lump as tears spilled freely from her eyes. Without Zaku or Dosu there, the days of solitude were finally catching up. She had abandoned her village and comrades. She was all alone in the world. Kin did not want to cry—to show weakness, but this was something she could not help it. "Hey, hey, hey…! What's wrong?" A hand came down on her shoulder. Startled, Kin looked up. Kiba had moved to her side and wrapped his arm around her. She had forgotten he was there. More tears came. She felt even weaker than before. Letting some stranger see her cry—how pathetic…

Her body was started to shake again. This was stupid. What was point of living, anymore? She had nowhere to go. No one cared about her. She was alone. She was betrayed. She was—another arm moved around her. Kin blinked back another flow of tears. She stared down at the arm that was holding on to her waist. Her eyes then shifted up to Kiba. He had completely enveloped her into a _hug_. She had not been hugged since she was three. Why was he…? "Ge-Get the hell-"

"You can cry," he interrupted. "I don't know what's wrong with you, but it's obviously not good. You can cry until you go to sleep. I'll stay like this for your benefit."

"… Why… Why are you doing this?"

"I don't know how things are in your village, but in _this_ village, we learn to help each other out when we need it." She could sense the grin on his face. "So you can just get use to this hospitality." Kin slowly bowed her head. He wasn't lying. He actually seemed to care. Maybe he'd gotten brainwashed, too, but… this was nice. She liked this. Inuzuka Kiba was nothing but a stranger, and yet she felt closer to him than she had her teammates. "Don't get it twisted, though. This doesn't mean I like you or something."

"… Get the fuck off me."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Yamanaka Ino yawned loudly, not bothering to cover it up. It had been another grueling day of training. Today, her father had been much more relentless in his attacks. Of course, he told her it was for her own good, but it was still infuriating. How was she, a mere genin, supposed to challenge her father, an elite jounin? It was all too much. Ino had not sweated so much in her entire life! The blond shrugged. She supposed it was all worth it in the end. If she wasn't going through this type of training, she wouldn't stand a chance in hell against Gaara.

The blond shuddered at the thought of his eyes. In just a few more days, her fight with him would begin. Ino released a long, weary breath. "_Aww_, man… Why couldn't I fight Sakura-chan, instead?" Oh well, it didn't really matter. What happened has happened. There was no changing what was to come. Ino yawned again as she walked towards her home. By this time, her mother had already gone off to bed, so chances were that there was no hot meal, waiting for her.

Stumbling into her house, Ino realized that she had been right. There was no warm smell coming from the kitchen. She, unfortunately, had to eat Ramen again. Ino would be glad when chuunin exam was finally over. Ramen was not a very good source of nutrients, after all. The blond kunoichi closed the door behind her. She was now in the sanctuary of her room. After putting her bag down—they contained mostly weights, weapons, and scrolls—Ino shed her clothing. "I'll take a quick shower before fixing something to eat." The blond nodded her head, and then walked towards her very own bathroom.

--

Ino, once again, blew on her steaming pork-flavored Ramen. She would have to thank Chouji for getting her a year's worth of Ramen. At the time, she had yelled at him, but now it was becoming an important food source for her. _"Next month, I'm eating nothing but fruits and vegetables!"_ Ino silently vowed as she stuck broke her chopsticks apart. "Itadakimasu…!" She began eating.

The blond kunoichi was currently on her rooftop. When she was younger, she would eat on top of her house. It was easy to get on the roof from her window. Chakra wasn't necessary to reach it. Eating up on the roof had been fun back then, but now it was more… relaxing. Ino looked up, still slurping up a noodle. "Come to think of it… There are no stars tonight…" Actually, there were several nights in a row that there hadn't been any stars. It gave Ino a bad feeling. Only the moon had lit up the night. Yes, it was bright, but Ino missed the stars. Shikamaru had been a cloud person, but the Yamanaka liked gazing up at the night sky more. Ino mentally shrugged as she continued eating. Perhaps there would be stars tomorrow night.

"Have you gotten stronger?" The sudden voice startled Ino so much that she choked on a noodle and even dropped her Ramen cup. It rolled off the roof as the blond grasped her throat, trying to spit out the noodle. Finally, she managed to spit out the noodle. She glared down at the ground below. All the contents of her Ramen cup were now splattered in front of the door. Some of the 'juice' had gotten on her window as well. It was going to be a pain cleaning it off. An angry growl nearly escape Ino's throat. Her eyes burned with hostility. She rounded and prepared to give—whoever it was that had scared her—a punch to the face. That is… until she saw who it was. "Well…?" The person gave Ino an inquisitive look, not the least bit phased by the fierce—almost demonic—look he had gotten.

The blond backed up, only to realize that she couldn't. She was on the edge of her roof now. She was cornered. Ino gulped nervously. She could feel her heart beating quite rapidly thanks to the uninvited guest. Why was he here in the first place? Oh, _God_…! Was he _stalking_ her?! _"Calm down…! You're not scared! You're not scared!" _Ino told herself, knowing full well that it was all a lie. "Wh-What…?" she stammered out. His lips twitched. From that simple action, Ino knew that he enjoys doing this sort of things with his… victims. She could see the amusement in his sea green eyes. The blond cleared her throat, and tried to glare. "What do you want?" There, she sounded a bit more confident. Hostility flashed in his eyes; Ino gulped again.

"I asked a question. I won't repeat myself," he stated. Despite being frightened, Ino's eye twitched. That spoiled little brat, she thought.

"I could as-ask the same question," Ino replied. "_Gaara_…" The Sand shinobi narrowed his eyes. She had the nerve to say his name—and with such _defiance_ in her blue eyes, too.

"I have no need to get stronger, as I am already strong. You, and everyone else, on the other hand, are weak."

Ino almost snorted. Just who did this guy think he was? Sure, she had heard rumors that him and his siblings—really, they looked nothing alike and Gaara had threatened them as if they were random strangers—were the children of the Kazekage, but that didn't give him the right to be so arrogant. "I don't like the way you're looking at me, girl." Sand slowly eased out of his gourd. Ino's eyes grew as it loomed closer to her.

"What are you doing?!" she asked, frantically. "I haven't gotten a chance to use your weakness against you yet!" The sand dropped to the roof. Gaara looked unconvinced, and yet Ino was no longer in danger… at the moment. Ino silently breathed a sigh of relief. _"I think my life as been shortened…"_

"I have no weakness." The sand shinobi turned his back on the leaf kunoichi. "You're either lying, or you're just a fool. My perception of your skills is that you, quite frankly, suck." Ino blinked. Did he just…? _No_…! It couldn't be! Not this guy. Although he was quite scary, he was also polite… when he's not out to kill. That talent is most likely from being the son of the Kazekage. He did _not_ just use slang!

"Come again…?" she asked, just to make sure. If he says 'That's what she said,' then this was a weird-ass dream.

"I said your skills are awful… stupid girl."

Ino bristled.

She was never the one to back down from a challenge, and this guy was definitely challenging her! She was still slightly scared, but now it was replaced with irritation. Gaara must be dealt with. "At least I'm not the _slowest ninja_ on the face of the planet!" The red-headed Sand ninja looked livid (i.e.: Gaara is the slowest playable character in _Naruto: Ultimate Ninja_). Ino couldn't help but think she had made a mistake. The sand began moving again.

A _big_ mistake…

"I'm going to kill you slowly and painfully." He grinned sadistically, causing Ino to believe that he was psycho. She had seen quite a few sadistic grins since the chuunin exam started, but his took the cake for sure. "And I'm going to enjoy every minute of it." His sand swirled around his body. He disappeared, leaving Ino alone on her rooftop. It was as if the Sand shinobi hadn't been there at all—he had left no trace. There was not one grain of sand left behind. The blond swallowed apprehensively. She chuckled uneasily as she placed a hand on her chest, trying to stop her racing heart.

"_Perhaps… it's not a good idea to use his weakness against him…"_

The kunoichi promptly fainted.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Days later…

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Mitarashi Anko grinned as she watched her student collapse from exhaustion. She walked over to the fallen kunoichi, grin still on her face. "It's four days from now. Are you ready?" For a few moments, there were only the sounds of heavy breathing from the tired girl. Slowly, but surely, the young kunoichi pushed herself off the ground. Anko smiled, seeing the grin on the girl's face.

"Oh yeah… I am _so _ready! I cannot lose! I will beat anyone who crosses me!" Mayu replied. Green eyes twinkled with newfound enthusiasm. "… _Right_ after a nap…!" The girl tumbled backwards, sleep before she hit the ground. Anko chuckled, and then her brown eyes examined the training field.

The entire clearing had been completely destroyed.

--

Jiraiya watched his student sleep. It was only natural that he had been sleeping this entire time. Riding on Gamabunta with all his might took a lot out of him. Despite the brat's disrespectful behavior towards him—calling him Ero-sennin and whatnot—the toad sage was proud of his new pupil. Not many people could stay on top of Gamabunta's head for long. Not even he, himself, could accomplish that feat. Really, only _one_ other person managed to do it. "The finals start in four days, Naruto." Jiraiya turned away from the sleeping blond with a smirk on his face. "Show these foolish villagers what you're really made of." The toad sage exited, by means of the hospital window.

Naruto continued to snore, obliviously to his guest.

--

Hatake Kakashi smiled under his mask. His student's skills had rapidly increased greatly since the preliminaries ended. As an individual, there was not much that needed to be taught—fighting-wise, anyway. The copy ninja made his way over the boy, who currently had his back against a large rock; he was drinking water from a canteen. "Four the next four days—up until the finals—you will work on the jutsu I showed you." Sasuke nodded his head. "But don't use it in the finals unless you have to, alright?" The Uchiha looked up at his sensei. Kakashi looked mildly surprised.

Sasuke had grinned.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Sarutobi Hiruzen massaged his temples. He had just finished listening to some of the hospital staff complain about the giant footprint found near Uzumaki Naruto's body. The reason for the complaints had been due to the fact that it was right in front of the hospital. Another reason was because it was Naruto who was found near it. It was just another reason to blame the boy for something. The footprint seemed to have belonged to an amphibian of some sort. This observation led Sarutobi to believe that Jiraiya, his former student, had something to do with it.

Speaking of his former student… Sarutobi shifted his eyes up. Jiraiya was hanging from the ceiling. "What is with younger generations and using doors…?" He raised an eyebrow. "Jiraiya, it's been awhile. To what do I own the pleasure?"

"Just hanging…" The toad sage grinned. The Hokage almost rolled his eyes. "Naruto's training is complete for now." Sarutobi nodded. "He reminds me of _him_."

"Yes."

"But just on looks…! That kid's attitude is on the borderline of unbearable!"

"That certainly sounds like Naruto." Sarutobi chuckled. "Will you continue to-"

"Of course."

"That…" A sudden knock interrupted his sentence. Former sensei and student looked towards the door. The knock came again. "Come in." The door hesitantly squeaked open, reminding Sarutobi that he had to get someone to fix that soon. A jounin stepped into the room.

"Forgive me for interrupting, Hokage-sama-" she looked towards the toad sage. "-Jiraiya-sama…" Her eyes shifted back to the Third. "This is an important matter!"

"Yes, go on." Sarutobi leaned in, waiting. The woman cleared her throat and tried to ignore the fact that the toad sage was undressing her with his eyes.

"There's a girl here! She says she has information concerning the invasion!"

The perverted look immediately disappeared from Jiraiya's face. "Hold on a minute…! What invasion?!" he asked. The Hokage looked equally confused and apprehensive.

"She says that the Sound is planning to destroy Konoha during the exam! She even says that Orochimaru is involved!" Teacher and pupil exchanged a look. Just outside the door, the girl leaned against the wall with a small smirk on her face.

"Let's see what happens when your plans are flawed, Orochimaru-sama."

A call from the office, beckoned Tsuchi Kin into the room.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

I am so glad that this chapter is finally done. Now I can move on! As you can see, the story is _finally_ breaking away from its original plot. Now, I'm well aware that the main characters were barely in this chapter. I did it on purpose! _Can you figure out why_…? That's the only hint I'm giving. Be looking out for the next exciting chapter!

Next time: _Set It Off, Naruto! The Finals Are Here!_

I'm looking forward to seeing your amazing reviews!


	11. Set It Off, Naruto!

A light tapping at the door caused Sarutobi to look up—he had a last minute guest. In a few short hours, the finals of the Chuunin Exam would initiate. He was both excited and apprehensive about this day. Excited because he would see the next generation of ninja give their all for the chance of becoming chuunin, a title that meant the ninja have reached a level of maturity. He was apprehensive because of the information he had received just days ago. It was a possibility—no, a _fact_ that the Leaf would be attacked by the combined forces of the Sand and Sound. More troubling though was the fact that his former student was leading the invasion. Sarutobi sighed lightly, returning his eyes back to his desk. There were no papers. It was completely cleared off. He would not be returning here after today, after all.

The tapping came again.

"You may enter."

The door slowly creaked open. "Hey, old man…!" Jiraiya greeted his former mentor. Sarutobi raised an eyebrow. The toad sage blinked. "What?" The Hokage shook his head.

"It's nothing, really, but… Shouldn't you be off gathering information?" Jiraiya smirked at the old man's question.

"That eager to read my new book, huh?" he asked. Sarutobi's face held a slight blush. He coughed lightly, yet did not answer.

"There must be some reason that you are here." He stood as he said this. Jiraiya narrowed his eyes.

"Say, old man…?"

"Yes?"

"You wouldn't be planning on dying today… would you?"

Sarutobi looked taken aback. "Why would I plan to die?" Jiraiya gave him a knowing look. The Hokage sighed. "So you saw through my henge, did you? You must have sense the constant emission of my chakra." The toad sage blinked as his former teacher dispelled his transformation. Sarutobi was dressed in armor and combat gear. Jiraiya blinked again. Really, he had only heard the grinding of the armor when the old man had stood.

"Sure… Le-Let's go with that." The toad sage cleared his throat. "I came here to let you know that I will be the one to take care of Orochimaru when he makes his move." He glanced down at the armor before returning his eyes to Sarutobi's. "But I can see you didn't even think about such a thing." After a moment of silence, the Third simply sighed.

"Jiraiya, I… I know of your feelings for him and-"

"And I know yours-" Jiraiya interrupted. "-which is exactly why _you_ shouldn't fight him. Another reason for you not to fight him is because—well, this village needs a leader, a chief, and that's you!"

"Orochimaru is my responsibility—my _mistake_ and I intend to fix it even if it were to cost me my own life!" The Hokage roughly sat back down in his chair. He bowed his head. "I love Orochimaru… as if he were my own flesh and blood. It pains me to might have to kill him, and yet I must do it. I must do it for it is _my_ burden." For a moment, Jiraiya did not utter a word. "If that is all, Jiraiya?" The toad sage watched his former sensei closely. He could see the tears welling up in his eyes. He was trying desperately to hold them back. Jiraiya almost sneered.

"Yes… That is all. But before I go, let me tell you one thing." The toad sage turned his back to the village's leader. "The job of a director is to direct and remain on the sidelines—behind the scenes. This is to ensure that the movie is a hit. Without the director, the actors have no purpose." He began to walk towards the door. "This relationship is the same for a commander and his army. The commander is supposed to remain alive to continue to command. Do you really want the chaos of the village to be on your shoulders if you were killed?" Jiraiya opened the door. He turned his head slightly. "I will be back before the finals start to hear your answer." With that last statement, the toad sage was gone. Sarutobi bowed his head.

A teardrop slipped and splashed onto the desk.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

An annoyed looked was on Uchiha Sasuke's face, and it has been there since he had gotten to the Leaf Stadium. This was the place where the finals would take place. Sasuke, as well as the other nine—seven fighters were standing in the middle of the battle arena. Two of the fighters were currently late, which was why the Uchiha was sporting an annoyed look. If there was one other thing that he hated, it was definitely tardiness. He could barely tolerant it when his sensei was late. He didn't really think he had to worry about from anyone other than Hatake Kakashi. He thought wrong. Those two missing fighters were, in fact, his teammates.

And to think he practically begged his sensei to be on time for once.

Sasuke silently fumed as he crossed his arms. _"Where are those idiots?"_ He looked up towards the stands. There were a lot of people, ranging from mere citizens to powerful lords and important officials. Ninja of all ranks were also in the stands—including ANBU. There weren't many of them, so the Uchiha shrugged it off. It was probably just a precautious because of all the higher ups in one place.

The Uchiha impatiently tapped his finger against his bicep. Ino, noticing her crush's behavior, leaned towards him with a smile. "Ne, Sasuke-kun." She tried getting his attention. He only threw her an irritated look. "Maybe Naruto is afraid to face my teammate. And Sakura—she probably realizes that you can't defeat someone as great as you." Sasuke's eyebrow twitched twice. Ino decided to back away. She had never seen such a wild look in the Uchiha's eyes before. "Hey, it was just an opinion. No need to get pissy."

"Shouldn't you be worrying about your own match?" Sasuke casually replied through gritted teeth. He ignored the surprised look that passed across the kunoichi's face. "I mean, you saw what he did to Lee. There's really no telling what he'll do to _you_." Shikamaru grimaced, hearing that part of the conversation. He had just finished encouraging his blond teammate—albeit begrudgingly. There was no way he was going to do it all over again. It would be way too troublesome. It was just as troublesome as this tournament.

Surprisingly though, Ino only smirked. "You don't have to worry about me, Sasuke-kun. I haven't been playing around for a month, ya know. I'm gonna kick ass. Just wait and see!" The blond kunoichi moved back towards her original spot. Sasuke scoffed lightly, but scanned over the girl's body. She had not been lying. He could clearly see somewhat of a muscular structure under her clothes. It looked as if she had on a black, skintight, one-piece, body suit. Her legs and arms were covered, not allowing any skin to be exposed. On top of the one-piece suit was, of course, purple clothing. The top was sleeveless, and the bottom was shorts that reached her mid-thigh. Her hair had grown over the month—not to its original length, of course—and it was tied in the usual high ponytail; a few strands of her long bang had been colored purple. Her headband was securely wrapped around her forehead. She looked… good… for a #1 fan girl.

"_EEK_! SASUKE-KUN, YOU'RE _SO_ HOT!" A shout came from the stands. This caused Sasuke to sigh, and other spectators to laugh.

He stood corrected.

"_WAAHHH_…!"

Sasuke blinked in surprise and turned. What he saw was his blond teammate sliding to a stop in front of him. His mouth dropped open. "Naruto… I know you're loud, but… seriously… Did you _have_ to make such a noisy entrance?" The blond shinobi groaned lightly as he stood up. He shook his head rapidly.

"Quickly, everybody has got to-" Naruto began to shout, but that was quickly stopped by Sasuke striking him over the head. "What the hell was that for?!"

"For being late, you moron."

"Whatever…!" Naruto looked around. "Hey, where's Sakura-chan?"

"Not here, yet," Sasuke grunted.

"Hey, you two…!" The two in question turned towards the grown man. "Quit your bickering and face your audience with pride." The two boys looked up to a cheering crowd. They were roaring with excitement and anxiousness. "You guys are the heroes of this final competition." He was referring to every entrant. Naruto nodded his head while the rest of the fighters smirked, scowled, or look as if they didn't care—i.e. Shikamaru.

"Hey, hey, hey…! There are only nine of us! Sakura is late!" Ino complained. The Leaf ninja—excluding Naruto and Sasuke—looked at the blond, realizing that she was correct. "Are we starting this without her?"

"Yeah, well… If she doesn't show up for her match, she is automatically disqualified." Genma bit down on the senbon in his mouth. "And Uchiha Sasuke wins by default." Sasuke frowned. That was not the type of win that he wanted. Hell, no real fighter would want that type of win. His teammate had better get her butt in gear.

"HEY…!" A shout caused most of the competitors to look up. Gaara really didn't care. There was a person standing on the edge of the stadium wall. By this time, the audience had also spotted the figure. They murmur to themselves, trying to figure out who it was. "DON'T TELL ME YOU GUYS ARE GONNA GET RETARDED WITHOUT ME!" The Hokage chuckled in amusement. That girl was definitely like her mother—no, much like her grandmother, really.

"Is that…?!" Naruto squint his eyes to see. The position of the sun made it hard to see exactly who the person was. Judging from the voice, it was most definitely the late fighter.

"Without _thee_ retard? No way…" Ino murmured with a smirk. The figure suddenly leapt from the edge.

_Haruno Sakura_ had finally arrived.

"I'm here…!" the girl exclaimed, moving towards the rest of the participants. "Naruto, Sasuke…! Did you miss me?" She moved closer and closer, not noticing the aggravated look on her teammate's face. "It's been awh-" She never finished that sentence. Sasuke had whacked her over the head, much like he did to Naruto. "What the hell was that for, you bastard?!"

"For being late, dumbass…!"

"I'm gonna kick your stupid a-"

--

Meanwhile, up in the stands, Mitarashi Anko had joined up with Hatake Kakashi. She sat next to the man with her arms crossed. She had a grin on her face as if she knew something her comrade didn't. Kakashi, not really caring for the grin, gazed down at the group of fighters—more specifically, his team. "Why were you two so late?" He finally questioned the grinning kunoichi.

"Why are _you_ so early? It's not like you to be on time," Anko retorted. Kakashi shrugged. What she said was true. There was no denying it. "Anyway, to answer your question… We ran into some trouble on the way here." The copy ninja's eye grew a fraction.

"What kinda trouble?" The kunoichi noticed the slight quake in her comrade's voice. She narrowed her eyes. He knew something she didn't. That much was obvious. But she decided not to say anything on the matter, yet. Instead, she told him the reason for their tardiness. "Killer… bees?" Kakashi sighed lightly. "Well, that explains everything."

"Wait a sec…! You _knew_ she was afraid of bees, and didn't tell me?!" The kunoichi glared at the copy ninja. He looked almost sheepish.

"I didn't think it would be a problem." Anko gave a human growl. She complained that he took over a half an hour to convince the girl that the bees were gone and she could stop her running. "Yes, but you made it in time, so it doesn't really matter." Anko looked towards the arena, still grumbling.

--

Tsuchi Kin breathed slowly through her nose. This was to calm her nerves and stifle her sudden fear. The girl was down there—the girl that haunted her dreams. She was laughing with her friends as if she didn't have a care in the world. It pissed the missing-nin off a bit. She narrowed her dark eyes. She focused her eyes on her lap. She really didn't want to look at her tormentor at the moment. If she could help it, she didn't want to look at the girl ever again.

Anyway, she had more important things to worry about.

"_Oi_…!" A voice brought the girl out of her thoughts. "Is something wrong?" Kin turned her head towards the speaker. Both boy and puppy looked at her in concern. The girl turned her head away.

"I'm fine…! Quit giving me those puppy eyes!"

"_Who's_ giving you puppy eyes?!"

"Kiba-kun, be nice to Kin-san!" Hinata lightly scolded.

The Inuzuka grumbled something under his breath. For some reason, the Hyuga heir had taken an instant liking to Kin. So while in the presence of Hinata, it was not wise to badmouth her. Which was a shame… Kiba liked riling the girl up. The three had arrived at the stadium a few minutes before Naruto came sliding in. Kin had argued—practically threw a fit—that they should not be late no matter what. Thinking back, it was almost weird. Kiba stared at Kin out of the corner of his eye. She looked apprehensive. Earlier, Akamaru had warned him of the ANBU being here in the stadium. Adding this fact to the look on Kin's face had Kiba worried. Something was definitely going down.

But what…?

--

"Excuse me…? Could I sit here?" A woman looked up. Her emerald eyes locked onto a young girl. She was giving her a friendly smile, so the woman smiled back. She nodded her head and patted the seat next to her. "Arigatou…!" The young girl sat down next to the middle-aged woman. The woman stared at the girl, slightly fascinated. "Yes…?" The woman shook her head.

"Oh, it's nothing really. I just—your eyes are very pretty. I couldn't help but to stare!" The woman laughed in embarrassment. The young girl smiled.

"_Glad to see mom's still the same,"_ she thought.

"Hey, are you here by yourself?" the woman asked. The girl nodded. "Well, my name is Haruno Michiyo. What's yours?"

"Ha—_ah_, I mean… Ishikari Mayu is my name, ma'am."

"It's a pleasure to meet someone as cute as you, Mayu-chan."

Sakura laughed lightly before turning her eyes away. This woman was, in fact, her mother. Michiyo had no idea that her daughter had been following all day today. Sakura knew that the Hokage forbade her from interacting with family and friends, but she missed her mom so much. She really couldn't help it. She had not seen much of Ino because her blond rival was never in the places she would normally be. Looking down at the top ten, she realized where her rival had been—training was the obvious answer. Ino looked fit, not just skinny like she had the last time Sakura had seen her. This thought slightly depressed the girl. Had Ino gotten stronger than her since she's been gone? Has everyone gotten stronger than her since she's been gone? All month, she hadn't seen a single genin… except for Naruto, but that was just an idiot. "So, huh… Do you enjoy watching stuff like this?"

"Oh, not really. I actually only came here because my daughter is participating! Who would have thought that my little Sakura would be fighting in the finals? She's as headstrong as her father, you know!" Michiyo pointed down towards the group of fighters. "There is she—the one next to the blond boy. That's her teammate, by the way." Sakura's mouth dropped open. _Naruto_, of all people, was her other teammate? Cripes, could she catch a break? Well, at least she still had Sasuke. "You know she used to have pink hair until she dyed it," Michiyo continued, not noticing the look on the girl's face. Now she's a spitting image of me! I couldn't be happier!"

Sakura faked a smile. "I think pink hair would be better, though, right?" she asked. "It would make her stand out, making her seem more confident."

"Yeah, but… it's nice to have a daughter that looks just like the mother. I'm sure you'll understand when you have children, Mayu-chan." Sakura bit her lip as she watched the woman return her eyes back to her _daughter_. A bitter smile crossed the girl's face. She had never seen that look of admiration on her mother's face before, not concerning her, at least. She looked proud—prouder than she had even looked before.

"_Don't look at that imposter like that, mom…! Why are you giving her that look? I'm your real daughter! Look at me like that, not her!"_ The girl's throat constricted as blue eyes focused on the imposter. She narrowed her eyes in slight anger.

It was another reason to hate the girl as far she knew.

--

Mayu chuckled nervously. She was currently receiving exasperated looks from her comrades. "Killer _bees_…?! That's why you were so late?!" Ino looked almost enraged.

"Why are we not surprised…?" Naruto and Sasuke murmured in unison. This only caused Mayu to stick out her tongue. "But seriously, it's about time you showed up!" Naruto exclaimed. "Now you can see me kick ass!"

"Looking forward to it!"

"Hey, you guys pay attention! The Hokage is about to make his announcement." The genin of Team 7 instantly straightened up at Genma's words. They looked up to where the Hokage was. The old leader was now standing.

It was a relatively short speech, which consisted of greeting the crowd, and wishing luck to the finalists. Once he was finished, Genma turned to face the group of fighters. "There's one more thing before we get started." He pulled a piece of paper from his vest. He held it up for all to see. "There have been a few changes with the match-ups."

"What the hell…?!" Naruto shouted. "I thought I was fighting Chouji!"

"Troublesome…"

"What's with the sudden change?"

"How come _my_ match didn't change?!"

"Hey, there is to be no complaining. Memorize who you're fighting and be done with it." Genma folded the paper up and put it back in his vest. "As for the sudden change—you don't need to know about it. Fighting is all the same." A few members of the group grumbled. Shikamaru narrowed his eyes slightly. Well, at least it's not a girl, he thought.

_Uzumaki Naruto VS Temari_

_Nara Shikamaru VS Kankuro_

_Aburame Shino VS Akimichi Chouji_

_Uchiha Sasuke VS Haruno Sakura_

_Yamanaka Ino VS Gaara_

"Listen up," Genma began again. "The landscape is different, but the same rules still apply—there aren't any. The match will only end once someone admits defeat or dies. That being said, I can call the match if I feel that it's a loosing battle. No complaining, no talking back—do I make myself clear?" He didn't receive an answer. As if he needed one. The look in the top ten's eyes was all the reply he needed. "The first match is Uzumaki Naruto and Temari." The man gestured towards the stairs, leading up to the waiting room. "The rest of you have to wait until your match to come back down here. Now get moving so we can begin."

Six fighters started to move towards the stairs. Sasuke and Mayu, however, stuck around a little while longer. "Naruto, don't forget what we talked about in the preliminaries," Sasuke murmured. Nodding his head, the blond shinobi continued to stare at Temari out of the corner of his eye. Mayu patted Naruto's shoulder. Do your best, she told him. Again, the blond nodded. His teammates had the utmost confidence in him. There was no way he was going to let them down. And besides that fact… everyone was watching. _Everyone_ was watching… It was time to show these villagers that he was not just some punk kid with a demon.

Finally, his two teammates left him, leaving only Temari, himself, and Genma in the battle zone. The Sand kunoichi smirked. She definitely had this was in the bag. _"Look at that confident grin on his face. He really thinks he has what it take!" _Temari laughed in her head. _"I can't believe this little twerp actually thinks he can beat me."_

"Hey, sand girl…!" Naruto's voice caught her attention. Temari raised an eyebrow. "Wipe that arrogant smile off your face." The Sand kunoichi glared. "I'm _going_ to beat you! You're only another obstacle on my path to becoming Hokage!"

"Get over yourself! You think someone like _you_ could ever be someone as great as a Kage? Get real! What's some snot-nosed loser gonna do to me? Judging from the way you act, I can tell that you're just another spoiled little boy," Temari replied. The grin disappeared from Naruto's face, and was replaced with a scowl.

"You know nothing about me and my hardships! Instead of making false accusations, you should focus more _surviving_ this match!" Naruto's face hardened. "And don't come around here with that 'spoiled little boy' shit! Get your facts straight, or shut up, bitch!"

Temari almost snarled.

"What'd you say to me?!" She almost hissed. The Sand kunoichi slammed her giant fan on the ground. She gripped the top of the closed fan in fury. "Just wait until this match starts! I'm going to enjoy wiping the floor with you!" Genma's eyes moved back and forth between the two blonds. He had a sweat drop sliding down the back of his head. The man raised his arm.

"First match of the finals…" he began. Genma brought his hand down. "Begin…!"

--

"You think Naruto's gotten stronger since we last saw each other?" The two genin of Team 7 made their way up to the waiting room. Mayu rolled her eyes. "You don't have to do that. You could just answer me yes." Sasuke noticed the eye roll. He shoved his hands into his pockets as the two walked. It was silent for the most part. Nothing but their footsteps could be heard. "So… you wanna tell me why you're acting weird, or do I have to figure it out?"

Mayu stopped; Sasuke did not stop until he was a few steps ahead. The girl pressed her lips together as she gazed at the Uchiha's crest on her teammate's shirt. She bowed her head. "How'd you know something was… different?" The girl closed her eyes.

"Usually, Naruto wouldn't get a 'Do your best' from you. Usually, you would say something different like 'Set if off!' or 'You're definitely gonna win this!' It seemed strange that you didn't." Mayu sighed at her teammate's observation.

"I'll… tell you at a later time—you, Naruto, and Kakashi-sensei, too. I'll tell you guys everything." The girl lifted her head and walked forward, leaving Sasuke behind. "But for now, let's hurry and see Naruto's match." The Uchiha blinked in surprise, but then nodded his head. He quickly matched his teammate's pace.

What did she mean by _everything_?

It wasn't long before the two made it up to the waiting room. They moved over to the railing. They saw that Naruto and Temari had yet to begin the match. The two blonds were just staring at each other—well, glaring, really. "How much you wanna bet that they both said something to piss each other off?" Mayu rolled her eyes.

"What are you standing around for, Naruto?! Hurry up and start the match!" Sasuke called down to his teammate.

--

Naruto grinned. _"Sasuke's actually cheering from me!" _he thought. He ignored the fact that his male teammate wasn't really cheering for him. The Uchiha had actually only to don't waste time, but Naruto didn't mind. _"I'm so going to win this! Girl or not, she's still a fighter!"_

He made the first move, quickly throwing a few kunai at his opponent. The Sand kunoichi reacted quickly. She charged head on, twirling her iron fan in front of her. By doing this action, the kunai that had been thrown were instantly deflected before they made contact with Temari. Without stopping, she brought her fan up, ready to strike down the Leaf shinobi. The iron fan collided, but it somehow missed. The fan made a huge indent in the ground. _"He's faster than I thought…"_ Temari hurriedly turned, just in time to block a kick from Naruto. The kunoichi grabbed Naruto's ankle. Using her fan, she knocked the blond away. Naruto slammed into the tree. "_You_ want to be Kage with that power level? Don't make me laugh!" The kunoichi's taunt only succeeded in making Naruto smirk.

He slowly stood up, using the bark of the tree to aid him. "_Heh_… That was just a warm up. I was only testing you out. Now let's get serious!" The blond male made a hand sign. "**Shadow Clone Jutsu**!" Four clones appeared in front of Naruto. They all took out a single kunai. The four surrounded the Sand ninja. Her eyes watched this happen, yet her body didn't move. "Go…!" The clones rushed at the kunoichi, kunai pointed to stab. Temari merely jumped up a split second before the clones reached her. She opened her fan slightly, and then swiped down. The force of the wind pushed her up, while the attack blew the four clones away. The kunoichi smirked. The clones were nothing. Her body suddenly tensed up. Her eyes widen.

"No way…!" She quickly twisted her body. It was the only thing she could do before a heel collided with her chest, sending her falling to the ground. Naruto had appeared above her and knocked her back down.

Temari, shocked, but not out of it, opened her fan a bit more. She threw her fan towards Naruto. The fan acted as a shuriken and her attack succeeded in hitting the blond shinobi. Temari landed, but then quickly jumped up again. She grabbed a hold of her fan and slammed it against Naruto's torso. Spit shot out of the Leaf ninja's mouth. Naruto hit the ground. Temari pushed the weight of herself and her fan on Naruto's body and forced herself away. She smirked when she realized that Naruto was not going to get up anytime soon. "_HIIIIYAAA_…!" A shout made the girl turn. She blocked a punch from the Leaf shinobi. So she had been fighting a clone all along? Damn, this brat was smarter than she thought.

Temari blocked, dodged, and evaded every punch and kick was thrown. _"So this kid relies on brute strength alone, huh?" _Having enough, the blond kunoichi brought her knee up against Naruto's stomach. Hunching over, the blond shinobi choked out a pained yelp. The Sand kunoichi twisted and elbowed the blond in the nose. She finished her assault up with a kick to the chest, sending the Leaf ninja into the wall. "How boring…" Temari frowned as she watched her opponent slide down the wall. "Had enough yet?" Naruto's body suddenly disappeared in a cloud of smoke. "What…?!"

"Fooled ya…!" Arms suddenly wrapped around Temari's upper body. Startled, the girl could only gasp in alarm. Naruto moved his body backwards, taking the kunoichi with him. Since his opponent was taller than him, her head hit ground. The kunoichi shrieked in pain. Her neck had bent at an angle. Naruto pushed himself over the girl and landed on his feet. He released his opponent, causing her legs to fall over. The blond shinobi leapt away from the blond kunoichi. He watched the teen's body, which had yet to move. He took this time to grimace in slight pain. Having that giant iron fan slam against his person did not feel good at all. But because of that and his extra clone, the Sand kunoichi thought that _he_ had been a clone. His little trick had been successful. He had finally managed to get another hit. But how long would it be to his next hit? Temari was proving to be a very tough challenger. He had to finish this battle quickly if he wanted to win.

Temari's fingers twitched, causing Naruto to become alert. A deep growling-type noise came from the teen as she grabbed a hold of the end of her fan. Naruto narrowed his eyes. _"Shit…"_ he thought as he watched his foe slowly stand. She placed a hand on her neck, and then suddenly snapped it back in place. She clenched her teeth, waiting for the pain to subside. Naruto gulped as Temari fixed a glare on him.

"You… _tricked_ me." The girl's face looked almost demonic in his eyes. Naruto unconsciously took a step back. "I'm going to beat the shit out of you!" Temari opened her fan, showing off all three moons. She gripped the handle of the fan with both hands, and held the fan out in front of her. From Naruto's point of view, the fan looked like a straight line. He gritted his teeth. The Sand kunoichi was probably about to attempt some strong jutsu.

"_Like I'm going to let her…!"_ He made a hand sign. "**Shadow Clone Jutsu**!" What ever it was, it wouldn't work on numbers. And it was quite of few numbers. About forty clones appeared around the blond shinobi.

The Sand kunoichi smirked. "Doesn't matter how many idiots… The result is still the same!" Temari didn't lose her smirk even as the clones charged at her. The teen suddenly turned her body around. Faster and faster she turned until her body appeared as a blur. The wind suddenly picked up and swirled around the kunoichi's body. The clones that had gotten close enough were instantly blown away, disappearing in small puffs of smoke. Naruto gapped in amazement as a… _tornado_ appeared around his enemy's body, and it only seemed to get bigger. "**Great Twister Jutsu**!" Temari's voice rang out. The tornado around her body grew larger, eventually trapping all of the clones—and Naruto—in her jutsu. The blond shinobi's yelling wasn't heard as he revolved inside the deadly tornado. Rocks, tree branches, and all types of other things hit him.

"_Damn, I shouldn't have dropped those kunai…!"_ Naruto thought as another sharp object sliced through his skin. _"I've got to get-"_ Then he remembered something like this. One day, Iruka had told him something odd about tornados. He had said there was one point in the tornado where it was calmer than anywhere else. _"That's it…! The eye of the storm!" _Another kunai left another bloody line behind. Naruto forced his hands to come together in a hand sign. "**Sh-Shadow Clone Jutsu!" **Five clones made a chain link with the real Naruto at the end. The first clone swung, with effort, the other clones away. One by one, the clones disappeared, and because of their disappearance, Naruto was thrust forward away from the wind. "It worked!" The air around the blond was almost completely serene, and yet it was still keeping him airborne. He looked down. He saw Temari down below, still spinning with her fan. Naruto took a smoke bomb out of his weapon's pouch. He didn't really want to kill her, so he didn't pull out a weapon. The blond threw it down at the spinning kunoichi. The item hit the top of her head, causing two things to happen. One: purple smoke, of course, appeared. Two: because of the hit, the teen lost her balance and fell over. The tornado quickly dispersed.

Naruto suddenly realized that he was high in the air. The blond yelled as he began to descend towards the ground. "**Shadow Clone Jutsu**!" A clone appeared beside Naruto. "Don't just stand there, screaming! Hurry up and help!" The clone grabbed Naruto by the collar and flung him towards the wall. Using his chakra, the blond clung to the wall, saving him from a fatal fall. Naruto breathed a sigh of relief as his clone disappeared. Still clinging to the wall, Naruto quickly made his way down to the ground. Just as he reached the ground, a sudden wind pinned him to the wall. _"What the hell…?!" _He forced his eyes open to see Temari was controlling the wind. She looked livid. _"That damn fan of hers…!"_

"You stupid boy…! You've gotten on my _last_ nerve!" The teen bared her teeth at the blond shinobi. Naruto tried to move his arms, but that proved to be useless against the force of the wind. The harsh winds suddenly stopped, causing the boy to fall down on all fours. Temari strapped her giant fan on her back, and then ran at Naruto. The shinobi could only stand before the girl's elbow rammed into his nose. Blood flowed out of the broken nose, but Temari paid no heed. She thrust her palm up, having it smash together with Naruto's chin. Blood spattered on the wall. Naruto groaned as Temari yanked on his arm. His body moved forward—away from the wall—and then the kunoichi kicked him in the back, sending him flying ahead to the center of the arena. "Time to finish this off!"

The kunoichi pulled two folded fans from under her shirt.

--

Kankuro whistled as he watched his sister. "Oh boy, that kid's sure to lose now." He smirked, ignoring the glare that was being thrown his way by the Leaf ninja's female teammate.

"Naruto is tougher than anyone likes to give him credit for. What makes you so sure he'll lose to her?" Sasuke asked.

"Hey, now…! No need to glare! I'm only stating what I know." Kankuro grinned lightly as he turned towards Mayu and Sasuke. "Your idiotic teammate has succeeded in pissing my sister off. If you add that fact to the fact that she took out those two fans means one thing—a sure win on her part."

"That means nothing! What has those two fans got to do with anything?" Mayu grumbled.

"Those two fans are the key to her ultimate jutsu. Your buddy didn't stand a chance in the beginning, but now that those are out, he _really_ doesn't stand a chance!" Kankuro looked back towards the field. "He won't be able to move for awhile after this." Mayu grumbled some more, but returned her eyes back to the match. Sasuke did the same—without the grumbling.

"_Naruto…"_ he thought, narrowing his eyes.

--

Back on the field, Naruto slowly began to stand. He saw the coy smile on the Sand kunoichi's face. She was about to use a big move. He could tell by the look in her eyes. _"This is probably gonna hurt, but… What the hell? I'm curious."_ Naruto stood in place and waited for attack. He was planning to meet it head on.

The Sand kunoichi opened her fans. They looked like smaller versions of her large iron fan. Temari slowly moved one of the fan's above her head. The other fan was held by her stomach. She moved the fans around in smooth, flowing motions—completely contradicting the actions she did not a minute ago. Suddenly, the teen stopped. Three more girls stood appeared around the original Temari. Each girl had two fans in their hands. Naruto narrowed his eyes. They weren't clones. They couldn't be… Each one looked similar to the original, but the colors were off. One Temari had red hair, another had dark blue hair, and the last one had silver hair. Same looks, different colors. The original Temari stayed where she was while the others surrounded Naruto on all sides. Each girl raised her arms.

"Wind of the North!" The dark blue-haired girl spoke. She twirled around once.

"Wind of the South!" The original also twirled.

"Wind of the East!" The silver-haired girl caused Naruto's attention to be focused on her; she had just finished her twirl.

"Wind of the West!" The red-haired girl finished with a twirl.

For a moment, nothing happened. The entire area was in silence. Even the spectators were quiet, waiting for the big move to happen. All four kunoichi smirked. Naruto's eyes widen. "**Dance of the Four Winds Jutsu**!" They exclaimed in unison. The sky darkened, and the very ground trembled. Warm winds and cold winds mixed and began to form giant gusts of winds shook the very foundation of the stadium. Without really noticing until it was too late, Naruto was picked up off the ground. Around him, the winds swirled around, clearly visible to his eyes. The wind carried the blond higher and higher until he was suspended in mid air. Mobile, yet immobile. Moving, yet not of his free will. The speed of the wind picked up drastically, yet… nothing was physically happening to him.

_"What kinda jutsu is this?"_ That's when he felt it. His body felt heavy—almost like a ton of bricks. The energy—he was as if it was fading away. He could barely see anything, anymore. Just what was going on with his system? Now wasn't the time to be… getting… sleepy… Naruto felt numb. In fact, he could barely feel the impact of himself hitting the ground. He groaned. _"Why… do I feel so… drained?"_ The blond heard footsteps coming towards him. He slowly opened his eyes to see his opponent's feet. Though his eyesight was blurry, he was sure that it was her.

"You like that, loser?" Her boastful tone registered in his mind. "That jutsu doesn't really hurt, but it sure does damage to your body. While in my vortex, the person trapped will lose every ounce of their chakra. There's no point in fighting me anymore. You can't possibly win when you don't have chakra. So why don't you do us all a favor and call it quits, kay?" Naruto clenched his eyes shut, and pressed his lips together. He could faintly hear his teammates calling out to him. He had let them down. He had let _himself_ down.

Naruto had trained so hard for a month with that super pervert, but it was all for nothing. He couldn't believe that after all he'd been through, he was going to _lose_. A bitter smile settled on his face. Why—no matter how hard he tried—did he have to mess _everything_ up? "NARUTO-KUN…! _PLEASE_ STAND UP! I STILL BELIEVE IN YOU! YOU CAN DO IT!" The Leaf shinobi's eyes slowly opened. That voice was familiar. It was strange, though. He had heard that voice before, but never with that much volume.

Whoever it was, it sure did do the trick. Those words triggered a memory between him and that super pervert. That old man taught him how to control _both_ of the chakra systems. _"I'll just…"_ Naruto slowly stood up. Temari jumped a few yards away to keep her distance. She couldn't believe that the blond boy was actually standing, let alone making a ram sign and yell his head off. He was trying to concentrate on chakra that wasn't there!

"You idiot…! I just told you that your chakra has been drained from your system! Why don't you just give up…?!" Temari glared. She had never seen an iron will like this before. Naruto continued yelling, ignoring the kunoichi's question. "Why do you continue to fight me, knowing that you've already lost? I mean, there's a difference between bravery and _stupidity_." Naruto still didn't respond, causing Temari to lose her patience. "Why won't you stop?!"

Naruto finally looked at his opponent. "Why…?" he repeated. "Because that is my ninja way! I won't quit or runaway! And besides that…" The ground around him cracked. Dust particles and small rocks began to rise as if some invisible force was drawing them up. He could feel it—he could feel it welling up inside him, trying to push itself out. Naruto released the barrier that was holding the red chakra back. Once he did that, he felt the chakra washing over his body, curing the pain and the injuries he had received during the fight. With this sudden burst of strength, Naruto felt better than ever. "And besides that…" he repeated. "You called me a **loser**! _No one_ else will call me that after today!"

_"This feeling…!"_ Temari shielded her eyes from the intense winds. She had not been controlling them. It was the boy…! He was doing it! The kunoichi had only felt this certain emotion around one other person. That person was her younger brother, Gaara. _"What the hell is going on…?!"_

The red chakra finally stopped flowing, but it left behind an aura that covered his entire body. Naruto balled up his fist. "It's amazing… It's more power than when I felt the first time." The blond glared at his enemy. Not liking the look, the sandy-blond female took a cautious step back. Naruto paid no mind to Temari's wary step. It was definitely time to pay her back.

He disappeared.

"No way…!" Temari gapped at the spot that had been occupied by her opponent. That speed was incredible. It was most likely just as fast as that Lee guy. Just what was she going to do against that? A shiver suddenly went up her spine. She turned just in time to see Naruto throw a cluster of shuriken her way. Temari brought her fans up. A gust of wind sent the weapons back towards the blond. But this action proved to be useless since Naruto disappeared again. _"He's way too fast!" _Temari's eyes grew wide, feeling his presence again. A fist rammed into her cheek; the girl went soaring. The kunoichi flipped in midair and landed on her feet. Well, she would have landed on her feet if it wasn't for the clone that kicked her back, which sent her forward. Another clone's foot kicked her chin. This caused Temari to gag on her own spit and blood. Through blurry eyes, she saw him—the real him—grab the sash tied around her upper body. It was over… She had lost.

"**Uzumaki's Seismic Body Toss**!"

The teen was unconscious even before Naruto flipped away. Genma, the proctor for the finals, stared at the kunoichi's body. He guessed that she would be out for at least… an hour. His brown eyes turned to Naruto, who was panting. _"Can't say I'm not impressed."_ He let a smirk appear on his face. The man raised his hand. "The winner is… Uzumaki Naruto!" For a fleeting moment, the audience was in total shock.

"NARUTO…! YOU'RE SO AWESOME!!" Mayu's shout was soon followed by the applause of the other spectators. Naruto looked up in surprise. The crowd was screaming his name—they were _cheering_ for him! A happy grin appeared on the blond shinobi's face. He gave a victory sign while laughing in glee. He ran around the arena waving, laughing, and blowing kisses to all his new fans. Basically, he was basking in the attention he was receiving for winning against Temari.

--

"Hinata…! Hinata, why did you faint?! Hinata…!" Kiba shook his teammate, trying to get her to wake up. The Hyuga heir had fainted once Naruto had started hopping around with newfound energy. The Inuzuka briefly thought that it was amazing that Naruto had so much stamina.

"Naru-Naruto-kun… He-He blew a ki-ki-kiss at me…" Hinata murmured in her unconscious state. There was a blush on her face, and her eyes had been replaced with comical swirls. Kin smiled and shook her head as she turned her eyes back to the blond shinobi.

"_Who knew that the last member of that team was strong, too?" _She frowned lightly. _"I am so glad that I only had to deal with one of them."_

--

The two genin of Team 7 hopped over the railing. They landed on the ground below. Sasuke shook his head as he watched Naruto jump around in excitement. The two walked over to Naruto, which caught the boy's attention. He raced over to his teammates with a giant grin. "Hey, you guys…! I won!"

"Yeah, like we didn't just see it ourselves." Sasuke rolled his eyes with a smirk.

"You were really amazing, Naruto! I'm so proud, I think I'm gonna cry!" Sasuke rolled his eyes again at his teammate's words. She could be way more dramatic than she needed to be. "But anyway, Naruto…"

"Yeah…?"

"When all this is over… I want the three of us to have a talk." The girl smiled lightly. Naruto only gave her a baffled expression.

"About what, Sakura-chan?"

"… We will talk about something that will either make or _break_ this team."

Two pairs of eyes widen the female's words.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Finished December 14, 2008

Did I just change the matches?! I did, I did! So sorry for the Shika/Temari fans out there, but that match won't happen in this story. Speaking of which... Why did some of the matches change, but not others? If you squint, you can probably see why. But if not… I guess I'll explain—in the next chapter. Alright… Now the changes that have happened will affect the course of the entire story. Keep that in mind as you read the future chapters.

**Naruto and Temari's fight**: I've researched and researched, but I came to the conclusion that… Naruto really didn't have any good attacks at this time. Yeah, he could summon, yes, he could use the clones, but… that seems to be it, which is very disappointing. It took awhile to write that fight scene because of this, which is why Temari got some new jutsu. I love Temari's jutsu, but after awhile it… gets kinda repetitive, as you can see. Even with the new jutsu, it just seems… so unoriginal. But my impatience caused me to write faster, so it might have came out a little sloppy. The reason for my impatience is because of the next chapter. I'm really excited to do Sasuke and Mayu's match. But that's all I'm going to say on the matter.

Also, I kinda noticed that I only got three reviews for the last chapter. Am I doing something wrong? Was it because the focus wasn't on Team 7? Should I stop doing that? Please, your reviews are important--they tell me if I need to improve or stop writing a certain way. I would very much appreciate anything you have to say.

BTW: It's getting closer and closer to the _**title change**_, so look out for that!

Next time: _Electrical Inferno: Never Seen a Fight Like This_!


	12. Electrical Inferno

Sakura slid back in place. Naruto's match _literally_ had on the edge of her seat. She sighed jadedly as she listened to her mother cheer for her teammate. The girl mentally shuddered. The thought of that idiot being her _teammate_ still freaked her out somewhat. Blue eyes narrowed as she watched Naruto, her Sasuke-kun, and that imposter leave the arena. The little runt certainly had gotten stronger than before. He even had jounin-level technique in his arsenal. The boy, who could not complete a simple Clone Jutsu back in the Academy days, could now create a shadow clone. It wasn't just one either, he had been able to create many, and even use them strategically in battle. _"Does that mean that the little snot is stronger than I am…?"_ She second-guessed herself.

She pondered this for a moment before a self-assured smirk replaced her worried expression. _"There's just no way!" _With the things Mariko-sensei had taught her, Sakura was much stronger than she was before. Heck, she was most likely stronger than Ino-pig! With a confident nod, her self-doubt quickly dissipated.

Sakura was brought back to reality when her mother's hand slapped her shoulder. Startled, she winced. She rubbed her stinging shoulder lightly as her mother punched the air. So that was where she got her attitude from…? _Geez_… "Did you _see_ that?!" Her mother, Michiyo, pointed down to the arena, nearly slapping the head of the guy in front of her. "That little runt beat her! Those late night training sessions with Sakura _really_ paid off!"

"Yeah, I did see mo—Michiyo-san." Sakura pursed her lips together. She had almost slipped up and called the woman her mother. Thankfully, she did not seem to notice the mix up.

Finally calmed down, Michiyo smiled. "Wow, I'd never thought I would be so excited over kids beating the crap outta each other. What a way to kick-off this thing." The woman crossed her arms with an arrogant grin. "Well since it _was_ my daughter helping out, it's no wonder he won! She comes from a long line of team players, you know?" Sakura gave a fake smile. There she goes again—praising the imposter. Blue eyes trained on her lap. What she wouldn't give to tell her mother the truth right now. It was pissing her off that some girl took control of her life and was even getting praises from her mother. It wasn't fair in the least.

"_When I get my body back, I'll make sure she stays away from my team and my family!"_ Sakura silently vowed.

--

The Kages of the Leaf and Sand watched as Temari was carried away on a stretcher by two medic nin. Surprisingly, it was the Kazekage who chuckled. "My, my… This crowd is suddenly so energized." The Hokage took a glance at the Sand's leader.

"It was a great fight to start things off. It's no wonder they're excited. Thanks to Naruto, they can't wait to see the rest of the matches." The Hokage produced a knowing smile as he watched the blond and his team finally leave the showground. Controlling the demon chakra to such an extent was an impressive feat for the boy. And it was all thanks to his training with the toad Sanin. _"Sometimes I amaze myself!"_ The older man's thoughts were put to a stop by the Kazekage's voice.

"Yes, I couldn't agree more," he said. "Such anticipation—it's most likely from waiting for Uchiha Sasuke's match to begin. Shame he has to fight a _no name_."

"A no name, you say?" The Hokage closed his eyes. Who was Uchiha up against again…? His eyebrows furrowed together, trying to remember. Oh, yes—now he remembered. Haruno Sakura is the ninja he would have to fight—his own teammate. The Kazekage had been right, of course. The girl _was_ a no name ninja. Most people would probably only recognize her as the Uchiha and the Kyuubi container's teammate—_if_ she was lucky. Most likely, she would be forgotten all together.

The Hokage leaned back in his seat. A small smile appeared on his wrinkled face. _"But then again," _he thought as the bittersweet memories came back to him. _She_ was also an unknown ninja before her epic battle against him. After that phenomenal match, it was all up-hill for her. For awhile, it was her two male teammates that had to catch up with _her_. _"Those were the good ol' days…"_

The Kazekage cleared his throat loudly, snapping the old man out of his contemplations. He had been trying to get the Hokage's attention for the past three minutes. It was quite aggravating. Perhaps his old age was finally catching up to him…? The Hokage turned his beady eyes towards his fellow leader. "Not to sound rude, Hokage-sama, but why are you the only one up with me?" The man did not take his off of the arena as he asked his question.

"Are you implying that I require protection, Kazekage-sama?"

"No, of course not. It was merely a question."

The Hokage turned his attention away from the younger man. He had a knowing smirk on his face. "Well then, I ask the same question. No subordinates to wait on your beck and call, _hm_…?"

"No, no… My subordinates have a much more... _important_ job to attend to." The Hokage gave an inquisitive look, yet the Kazekage said nothing more. The old man cleared his throat before turning his eyes back to the field.

The next match should be starting soon.

--

The three genin of Team 7 walked towards their Leaf comrades. Chouji and Ino greeted the trio with smiles. Shikamaru, however, looked slightly depressed, but he still congratulated Naruto with his team. The blond male grinned as Ino patted him on the shoulder. She turned to Mayu. "Sakura-chan, you have a really amazing team!" she said. She then smirked, impishly. "Too bad the only thing amazing about _you_ is how big your forehead is." Mayu scowled at her words. She knew the blond kunoichi was only trying to rile her up—it was just good-natured teasing, but still…!

"You wanna go, Ino?!"

"Hell yeah! Bring it on!" Their male teammates rolled their eyes as the two kunoichi engaged in a mock fight. They looked similar to a couple of sumo wrestlers.

"Would you two knock it off?" Shikamaru muttered in an exasperated voice. The girls almost instantly stopped. They had grins on their faces.

"Lighten up, Shikamaru… We're only playing around!" Ino said as if it were obvious.

"Yeah, it's not like we're trying to kill each other!" They started giggling, confusing the hell out of their teammates.

"Give me a break," Shikamaru focused his attention on the arena. _"My match is next… Isn't that just peachy? What a drag…" _he thought.

"Alright…!" Genma's voice quieted the audience. "The next match is about to begin. The two who are supposed to fight—get down here!" Shikamaru visibly sagged. He sighed. He minds as well get this troublesome match over with. Ino slapped him on the back hard.

"That's you, Shikamaru! Show 'em your stuff…!"

This only further added to his sudden misery.

"Proctor…!" His opponent's voice caused Shikamaru, as well as the other Leaf ninja, turn to him. Kankuro of the Sand village was trying to get the examiner's attention. The man turned and looked up. "I withdraw—I withdraw, so please advance to the next match!" To say this development surprised everyone was an understatement.

"_What…?!"_ Sasuke stared suspiciously at Kankuro. _"Who comes all the way to the finals, and just gives up?"_ He then remembered what Mayu had told him and Naruto about that Kabuto guy. _"Could this guy have an ulterior motive for being here?"_ He glanced at his teammates to see if that had reached the same question. Naruto looked almost angry. Mayu, though, looked as if she was bored—almost as if she was expecting it. _"Again with the mystery…"_

"Dodged a kunai with that one." Shikamaru let out a relieved sigh. Ino smacked his on his head. "Why'd you do that, you troublesome girl?!"

"How could you say that…?! This was your big chance to show everyone your moves! You should be pissed!" Shikamaru rubbed his head while Chouji only chuckled. He was used to his teammates' squabbles, even though the lazy ninja tried to avoid them. They always happened, anyway.

Down below, Genma sighed, irritably. "Due to Kankuro's withdrawal, Nara Shikamaru wins by default." He didn't seem _quite_ as happy as Shikamaru did at the moment. The crowd didn't seem happy with this either. They yelled and ranted at Genma as if it were his fault. The man clenched the senbon between his teeth. "Onto the next match, then…!" He looked up. "Aburame Shino, Akimichi Chouji—you'd_ better_ get your asses down here!" Yes, the proctor was a bit peeved. The two shinobi quickly made their way down to the battle field. "Alright… Third match—Shino versus Chouji—begin…!"

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

On the outer reaches of the village, the Toad Sage sat on a tree branch, listening to the barely recognizable sounds of cheering. The next match had started, he assumed. Earlier he had heard the cheering of Naruto's name. A proud smile appeared on his face as he remembered the thunderous roar. So the villagers were finally realizing how remarkable Uzumaki Naruto was. Unfortunately, he could not be there to observe the boy's victory. There was a much greater occurrence that he needed to attend to.

Cautiously, he pulled back a skinny branch to get a better view of the targets. About ten Sand shinobi were in his line of vision. They seemed to be prepared to summon something—something big by the looks of it. Of course, he did know what that something was ahead of time. That girl, Kin, had told him—in great detail—where and why a summoning was taking place. If he hadn't known this, the village would have taken much damage—not to mention the death rate would have been great.

The man slowly allowed the branch to fall back into place. The four ANBU behind him watched and waited for any command the Toad Sage were to give. The man closed his eyes, deep in thought. Seeing this confirmed the girl's words. The Sand and Sound were planning to invade the Leaf. He opened his eyes. "Team Hyuga, have you spotted anything yet?" he spoke quietly into his radio. A high pitched noise, followed by a voice answered his call.

"Nothing yet."

"Alright, keep me posted."

"As you wish."

The Toad Sage removed his finger from the button. He stared at the group of Sand shinobi for a moment before talking into his radio again. "What's the status of the Sound ninja? Do you still have an eye on them?"

"Negative, sir… We lost track of them when they entered the stadium. I'm sure they didn't know we were following them, though. My guess is that they were supposed to go there and wait for a signal of some sorts. We didn't follow because we did not want to raise alarm too early." The ANBU captain he was talking to was quite the smart one. It would be disastrous had his group followed. The plan would go up in smoke had he decided to follow. "Awaiting further orders."

"Tell your men to discreetly surround the stadium. No one gets in, no one gets out. If they are Konoha ninja, then allow them to enter. I'm sure the stadium will need all the help they can get. Am I clear?"

"Roger…!"

He changed his radio channel. "Iruka-san… How are things?" he asked. The chuunin was quick to give an answer.

"The children are present and safe at the mountain hideaway."

"Great. Try not to alert them of trouble."

"Hai."

The Toad Sanin breathed deeply before focusing his eyes on the group of Sand ninja. He frowned lightly, narrowing his eyes. "Squad Eight," he addressed the ANBU behind him. They instantly perked up. "Attack and take no prisoners." After a quick nod, the four disappeared. Following their departure, the screams and yells of the Sand ninja entered his ears. The ANBU had done their job quickly and effectively. Within minutes, the elaborate diagram that the Sand ninja had drawn was destroyed. There would be no summoning of snakes today—not here, at least. Now the only thing left to do was to wait for the Hyuga Clan to spot something.

--

Hyuga Hiashi raised his fist, signaling a halt. Four Hyuga Branch members came to a stop behind the clan leader. Among those four was a mere genin. The other three were either chuunin or jounin. The one and only genin was Hyuga Neji. Hiashi could sense the apparent irritated aura from his nephew. It was coming off in waves. He believed that he was still angry about being ordered to patrol along with the three other Branch members. With a mental sigh, Hiashi lowered his arm. Now was a good time to reveal the truth, concerning the death of his father.

"Three up you, spilt up and search the perimeter—not you, Neji—and report back in two minutes," Hiashi ordered. His command was meant by affirmative grunts. The youngest Hyuga of the group frowned at his uncle's back. Why would he possibly want him to stay behind? Neji waited a few moments after his fellow Branch members left before talking to his uncle.

"You obviously want to talk to me alone. What do you want with me?" he asked, annoyed. Hiashi nearly glared at his blatant disrespect. He had done it numerous times since his father's death. The only reason he had gotten away with it for so long was because Hizashi had been his brother.

"There's a chance," he began, turning to face his pubescent nephew. "There's a chance that neither one of us will survive today." Neji was shocked by the words that came from his uncle's mouth—after all, the Hyuga clan was a very proud and confident clan—but quickly covered his surprise up with a scowl. "The chances of war happening is too high, and so I must tell you the truth about… that day."

"What are you saying?" He knew what day Hiashi was referring to, but there was no 'truth' behind it.

"That day… I was fully prepared to die."

"What…?! What the hell are you saying?!" Neji lost his temper. How dare this man—uncle, or not—try to mock his father's death. "That day my father was _forced_ to pose as you, and was murder for the sake of the main family! You asshole…!" Hiashi's eyebrow twitched at the insult, yet did not say anything. He reached into his robe and pulled out a scroll. He tossed it to Neji, who caught it without effort. "What is _this_?"

"The truth is in there, Neji," the man responded.

"Yeah right… It's probably only excuses of the main family. Why give it to me now. It's rather pointless."

Again, Hiashi's eyebrow twitched—this time, twice. "It is not excuses. It's from your father," he stated. _"You miserable little snot…!"_ he finished in thought. Neji was more like his father than he thought. Neji furrowed his eyebrows together. The three Branch members jumped down beside Hiashi. "Read it, and then go to the stadium, Neji. Your presence is required there." He bowed low to his nephew, which truly surprised the four Branch members. "I am truly sorry." He stood straight up. He turned to the other three. "Let's move…!"

"H-Hai…!"

The four adults leapt away, leaving a skeptical Neji behind. He stared at the scroll for a moment, recognizing his father's handwriting. So his uncle hadn't been lying… The young Hyuga quickly opened the scroll and began to read. Five minutes later, he stared wide-eyed down at the words of his deceased father. He could hardly believe it, but… it was definitely his words. His body trembled as he read the last sentence of the scroll.

_Forge your own destiny, Neji. Your fate is something_

_you create with your own hands._

The young Hyuga's face softened as he read the words again. "Father…" he murmured, closing his eyes. A silent tear slipped from behind his close eyelid. Not only had he been disrespectful to the man that his father _saved_, but he had also been a selfish brat. If his father hadn't done what he did, the Cloud village would have certainly declared war, and the Leaf village wouldn't be the same. He realized now that whenever he remembered his father, he would have to look past the bad memories, and focus on the good. For so long, he had been bitter about Hizashi's death. Now he had a chance to move past it.

Neji slowly rolled the scroll back up and placed it in his pocket with a smile on his face. Since his father had died, smiles were a rare sight to see on his face. The thought of the good time he and his father shared brought more tears. Suddenly his eyes grew wide, but then his face relaxed again as he remembered. The smile grew slightly. _"Father,"_ he thought, looking towards the sky. He wiped the wetness from his face. Men shouldn't show their tears often, after all. _"I have only two goals now… To become stronger, so I won't lose to anyone else again." _He thought about his fight with Chouji, and how he had foolishly underestimated his opponent. _"And to…"_ The sounds of past laughter filled his head. In his mind, he saw the back of a young girl. The little girl turned and smiled. _"And to find her—the girl who had wormed her way into our lives... That's what I feel my goals are right now. Please watch over me, father."_

With that last thought, Hyuga Neji made his way to the stadium.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"The winner is… Aburame Shino!" Genma stated. Hundreds of tiny bugs uncovered Chouji's unconscious form and returned to Shino's sleeve. Ino stared down at her fallen comrade with a frown. Although Chouji had given up moments before, those bugs still drained his charka. Her body twitched a bit as she watched the bug return to the bug-user. There was no way she would be able to survive five minutes in battle with Shino and not quit. Those bugs were nasty. She, herself, would probably give up the instant one of the bugs managed to touch her skin.

Chouji, on the other hand, kept fighting. He did his best, and it was definitely admirable. Ino had seen her teammate in a new light. She just wished she could have also seen Shikamaru fight like that—with such determination. Although Chouji could not hear, Ino cheered for him, ignoring the annoyed looks she got from those around her. Her cheering was unusually loud.

Shikamaru plugged his ear up with his pinky. Sure, he was proud of his teammate, too, but did she have to be that loud? _"Troublesome…"_ he thought with a smirk. Chouji's body was carried away on a stretcher, while Shino headed back up to the waiting area. Shikamaru turned, causing his female teammate to look towards him. "I'm going to see him," he announced. Ino smiled.

"I'll come with you."

"No."

"What do you mean _no_?" She lost her smile.

The lazy ninja turned his head, still smirking. "You wouldn't want to miss the next match, would you?" He turned his head back, hearing Ino gasp in realization. "I'll tell you how he is after I get back." By then, Ino was totally ignoring him. She focused her attention on her friend and rival. She was staring down at the field, unmoving. Her eyes drifted over to Sasuke, who was in a similar position. Naruto was looking back and forth between the two.

Her blue eyes lowered, realizing why there was hesitation. They were teammates. If it were her versus Shikamaru, she wouldn't be as excited. She tried to give some encouragement, but no words left her mouth. There wasn't anything she could say to lighten the mood. And judging from Naruto's expression, he didn't know what to say either, and _that_ was surprising.

Sasuke finally moved. He hopped up and perched himself on top of the railing. He looked back at his female teammate. His face was impassive, Ino realized, but his eyes held excitement. He _wanted_ to fight her! "Don't keep me waiting," he said, and then leaped high. He landed near Genma, and then turned towards where he had jumped. He crossed his arms with a smirk. This action made the crowd squeal in glee. After all, the Uchiha's match was finally starting.

Mayu stared at that arrogant smirk for a few more seconds before turning away, unimpressed. She had seen it countless times already. She slowly moved towards the steps. If he was going to be a prick about it, why hurry? Mayu knew for a fact that Sasuke hated waiting for a long time, so why not piss him off a bit? "Sakura-chan…!" Her blond teammate's voice caused her to stop. She turned her head slightly to let him know she was listening. "I won't say do your best because I know you will… Just—just go all out, okay?" She nodded to answer him.

"What do you think I've been training for…?"

--

"Here it is…! It's finally my daughter's turn to fight!" Michiyo grinned, practically bouncing around in her seat. For the most part, Sakura ignored her mother's cheering. It was frustrating and distracting, so she decided to tune her out for now. Sasuke was visible to her eyes, and her focus was on him alone. The Uchiha looked even hotter than he did the last time she'd seen him! His hair had grown and he was—he just looked so much _cooler_!

Sakura had to stop herself from squealing. It was about time his match started. He should have been the very first one to fight! It would be very weird to see him fighting her body, though. _"Let's just hope she can defend—at least a little bit—against Sasuke-kun. I don't want my body getting worse than it is now. For her sake, she had better just quit. There's no way she'll land a hit on Sasuke-kun!"_

--

Inuzuka Kiba concentrated on Sasuke from where he sat. He was anticipating this next match more than he realized. Uchiha Sasuke was going up against Haruno Sakura. Kiba had initially written the girl off, not bothering to worry about her. She was just an average kunoichi—there was nothing special about her. But in the end, she had managed to take down his teammate. It was an shocking win to say the least. Hinata might not have been the strongest kunoichi—not that he had little faith in his teammate's abilities—but a nobody beating a person with an advanced bloodline? It was a farfetched idea, and yet it happened.

If she could beat Hinata, there was no guarantee that she was going to lose to Sasuke. The way she was against his teammate was embarrassing, but it was also entertaining. Inwardly, he wanted to see what smart-ass idea she would come up with to try to beat someone like Uchiha Sasuke. He grinned at the very thought of Sasuke fainting over the Sexy Jutsu. "Kiba…" The girl next to him spoke for the first time in awhile. The Inuzuka looked over to his temporary houseguest. Her dark eyes were also focused on the field below. "Let me hold Akamaru for this fight."

"What?" he asked confused. It was a strange request. The girl repeated her demand, this time looking exasperated. "I know what you said…! I just want to know why."

"… It's nothing. Just let me hold him." Kiba stared suspiciously at her, which caused Kin to turn her eyes away. "Just for this next match, alright?"

"Fine." Kiba finally conceded. Eagerly, the little dog jumped into Kin's lap. "Jeez, Akamaru…! You could've waited until I told you!" The dog only barked happily in his new position.

"It seems he likes me better than you." Kin smirked as she rubbed Akamaru's ears. She ignored Kiba's slightly angered look. The little dog proved to be comforting to her. Akamaru had always calmed her down. Although she now slept at the Inuzuka compound, she still had nightmares about _her_. The screaming only ceased—according to Hana—when Akamaru was in close proximity. He had kept her nightmares at bay, and so she was grateful to the puppy. "And now I have to watch her fight, so keep close to me, Akamaru." Kin's whisper was met with an affirmative yip from the canine.

Kiba knitted his eyebrows together in confusion. He had heard her, but he did not understand what she meant when she said it. It was something concerning _Sakura_, but that wasn't it—it couldn't be. Kin never really mentioned her personal life. Favorite color and food, but it was never anything big. She didn't even share her nightmares with anyone other than Akamaru, and he would not tell him either. Kiba's eyes suddenly widen as a stray thought hit him. Kin's nightmares couldn't be connected with Sakura, could they? _"But… it's Sakura…"_ Kiba deadpanned at the thought. He shook his head. _"Kin wouldn't be afraid of Sakura. There's just no way. She's not even afraid of Kuromaru!"_

"_Ah_, Sakura-chan finally came out!" Hinata announced.

Even so, he noticed that Kin's grip on Akamaru had gotten tighter.

--

Mitarashi Anko grinned as she crossed her arms. "Well, it's finally here, Hatake. Who do you think is gonna win this one?" Kakashi did not answer. "Hatake…?" Anko turned her brown eyes to her comrade… only to see that his focus was on the small orange book in his hand. The kunoichi hissed, and then smacked his head. Startled, Kakashi did not stop the book from falling from his hand. He looked over to Anko with a confused expression. "Didn't you hear a word I said?!"

"_Ah_…" The copy ninja bent forward to pick up his book. He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Sorry, wasn't paying attention." Anko fumed.

"Your kids are about to fight each other and you're _distracted_?!"

"My fault…" he murmured, shifting his gaze to the field. This only further infuriated the kunoichi. "So they are…" The copy ninja snapped his book closed. This was a match he wanted to see. His students were about to show off the results of their training. And since he did not oversee Sakura's training, chances were that she had some new tricks up her sleeve. "So how much stronger has my student become?" Kakashi asked in a casual voice.

Anko grinned again, her angry mood already forgotten. "You'll just have to wait and see. But let me warn you. You'd better not think Uchiha has this one in the bag." Brown eyes focused on the field. Sasuke and _Sakura_ were now facing one another. He had an irritated look, while she had a neutral look on her face. Kakashi smiled underneath his mask.

"The thought never crossed my mind."

--

"It took you long enough!" Sasuke frowned at his teammate's late arrival. She did not response. "_Oi_, what's the matter with you?" Still, Mayu did not answer. She only stared at Sasuke with such intensity that it freaked him out somewhat. "Hey, I know you hear me talking to you." Mayu finally reacted. She sucked in a breath—almost looking as if she was wincing.

"I've wanted to ask you this for a long time, Sasuke." She narrowed her eyes, and then bit her bottom lip. "I know this might sound random, but what the hell are you _wearing_?!"

Sasuke, caught off guard by her question, looked down at himself. It was a one piece suit with short legs that stopped above his knees, short sleeves, and of course, the wide collar that was present on most of the clothes he owned. The clothes were black in color with the Uchiha crest on the back. He also was equipped with a pair of soft elbow pads, and his shins were bandaged until just below the knee. A pair of black straps twisted up his legs until stopping at the edge of the bandages. Annoyed, Sasuke looked back up to glare at his opponent. "Are you implying something?" he asked. "Because _you_ look ridiculous!"

Mayu looked down at the body that did not belong to her. It was unlike any other clothes in Sakura's closet. The shirt was a thin-strapped, black halter top. The edges of the shirt were lined in white. The top stopped just above her stomach, showing off the girl's toned midsection. Underneath the halter top was a long-sleeved fishnet shirt. The bottom of her outfit consisted of black, skin tight, shorts that ended below her thigh. On top of the skin tight shorts, she had another pair of shorts on. They were black and white—matching her top—and loose fitting. She had dyed her hair again, making it appear pitch black; it was tied—as usual—in a long braid. Her headband was tied snugly around her forehead, underneath her black bangs. To most young males, this outfit had made the girl look quite cute—perhaps even sexy if she had _boobs_. Equally annoyed, Mayu looked back up. "This was the _only_ badass thing in her closet! Lay off me! And besides," she patted her stomach, seemingly proud. "It shows off the muscles I worked hard to make."

"The only thing it shows off is how _flat_ you really are!" Sasuke snapped. So he was slightly pissed that his outfit had gotten a thumbs down from his teammate, big deal. Mayu bristled at the comment, but told herself over and over again that it 'was not my body.' Sasuke ignored her glare. "I'm not going to go easy on you, flat chest," he warned.

"Like you _need_ to, bird brain…!" Mayu retorted. The two glared at each other as they threw more random insults at one another. Genma sweat dropped at their heated stares. Were they really teammates?

"I don't mean to interrupt, but we kinda need to start the match." The bickering instantly ceased. "Uchiha Sasuke versus Haruno Sakura-" The two genin dropped into standard stances. "-Begin…!"

--

Neither fighter moved an inch. They, instead, opted to continue staring each other down. Sasuke knew that it would not be easy to take down his teammate. Before he really noticed her appearance, he that briefly thought he could _spar_ with her for awhile—because there was no way she had gotten stronger than him—and then knock her out by punching her stomach. Looking at her now, that wasn't such a good idea. Her body had actually _looked_ stronger than before. She probably wouldn't feel much if he punched her stomach.

His dark eyes scanned up and down his opponent's body again, more specifically her eyes. They weren't the same as before. After the preliminaries, when the fights were introduced, she was practically bouncing off the walls when she learned who she would be fighting. Now… her eyes seemed clouded. Had something happened to her during the month that they were all separated? Her previous words echoed in his ear. Remembering made him narrow his eyes. He wasn't really interested in breaking this team—not after realizing it had the potential to be great. He shifted his foot forward. _"The time for thinking is over…"_ He rushed forward.

Sasuke dug into his holster as he ran. Mayu launched forward, pushing herself from the ground. The quick jump caused Sasuke to stop his run. Narrowing his eyes, he threw three shuriken up towards her. She countered this attack by reaching for her own weapons. The kunai and shuriken collided in midair with a loud clang. Sasuke jumped up as she was descending. Wasting no time, he kicked the girl away. The two landed; however, she had turned into a log. _"Substitution…?" _Sasuke turned and blocked a punch, which was aiming for his face. "You're going to have to do better than that!" he taunted, forcing Mayu back. The kunoichi only frowned.

She watched her teammate disappear from her line of vision. He was definitely faster than he used to be. She sensed Sasuke behind her, but she did not react fast enough. Sasuke delivered a sharp blow to her back, followed by a powerful kick that sent Mayu sprawling to the ground. He slowly lowered his foot. His teammate pushed herself up from the ground with a grunt; she glanced back at Sasuke, causing him to frown. _"Is that all she's got?"_

Fully standing, Mayu turned and rushed at him, four kunai in between her fingers. Her other hand was preoccupied with grabbing shuriken from her holster. Swiftly, she flung the small weapons at Sasuke. The shinobi nearly scoffed as his deflected the shuriken with a kunai. The kunoichi moved closer and closer. With precise aim, Sasuke launched the kunai from his hand. Mayu materialized behind Sasuke as the kunai impaled itself into the log. She slashed at his back. But to her surprise, Sasuke twisted his body and rammed his elbow into her jaw. Momentarily blinded by the pain, she didn't stop the strong rising kick that followed after. This kick sent her up and away. Her back slammed on the ground. Despite herself, she released a pained gasp.

Sasuke, less than pleased with her performance, sneered. With his fingers clenched, he walked over to his fallen opponent. Just what the hell was with her, anyway?! What the hell had she been doing this entire month?! Not once had she been able to hit him—hell, she barely touched him at all during this fight. Mayu sat up. She watched as her—seemingly angry—teammate stalk towards her. With a sour smile, she stood up again. It was no wonder he appeared angry. He vanished from her sight again. She felt his strikes against her legs, causing them to buck. She fell to her knees. Sasuke grabbed the long braid and yanked it up, which hurt. Mayu winced as he continued to yank her head to and fro.

"What the hell are you doing?" His voice was calm, yet his words were fierce. Yeah, he was definitely angry. "Is this all you have to offer me?" Again, he pulled the hair, causing the girl's head to snap in that direction. "Is this your way of saying I wasted my time training to beat you? You're _pathetic_…!"

"Oi… There's no need to be so har-"

"Shut up…!" Sasuke snapped at the proctor, and then turned his dark eyes back to his teammate. Genma clenched the senbon between his teeth so hard that it snapped in two.

"_Teh… Damn brats,"_ he thought, spitting it out. He mentally winced when Sasuke slammed the girl's head into the ground.

--

Up in the stands, Sakura smirked. "_Humph_...!" Just as she thought—the imposter was no match for her Sasuke-kun. He was just _too_ powerful. A slightly worried look surfaced. _"But does he have to beat her up so bad? Sasuke-kun, have you forgotten that that's my body you're fighting. Don't hurt me too bad!"_ Beside her, Sakura's mother was silent. Her green eyes were trained on the two genin down below. Her dark eyebrows were knitted together. _"She must be realizing that her 'daughter' isn't as strong as she thought."_ The smirk returned as blue eyes focused on the fight again. It wasn't much of a fight, really. It was almost like bullying. Others around her agreed that it wasn't really a fight.

"Sakura…" Michiyo murmured, frowning.

--

"Man, what a boring match." A man sighed as he closed his eyes. He had spent three nights outside of his home—wife had kicked him out because of his hyper behavior towards the finals—just to see this match. He had thought this was at least going to be interesting. It wasn't interesting in the least! "If I had known he was up against such a weak girl, I wouldn't have come." The man suddenly froze, feeling a dreadful feeling wash over him. A hand touched and squeezed his shoulder. He opened his eyes. He found a kunai at his neck, which caused his eyes to grow wide in surprise and fear. He slowly turned his head.

Brown eyes glared menacingly at him.

"Care to repeat that?" The man recognized these eyes. They belonged to a very well-known—infamous—kunoichi. He gulped, feeling the blade press against his Adam's apple. "Come on, I dare ya!" Before the man could speak, however, she was pulled away from him.

He would forever be in Hatake Kakashi's debt.

"Now, now, Anko-san. You must learn to ignore ignorant fools." The man's eye twitched.

Maybe not…

Mitarashi Anko crossed her arms and grumbled. Kakashi's eye shifted to her, and then down to his students. He could slightly understand Sasuke's anger towards his teammate. It was like promising a four-star meal, but then only giving table scraps instead. He sighed wearily as he watched Sasuke yank his teammate's hair again. The Uchiha was acted much like a child would if their favorite toy was taken away. He was basically throwing a tantrum… Kakashi wondered, though, why the girl wasn't responded to his actions and taunts. "_Grrr_! That stupid girl is pissing me off!" Anko hissed. "I know she's capable of more! Why isn't she doing anything?! I taught her better than _this_! If she's all _boo-hooey_ about what happened with the Hokage, then she doesn't deserve to be a chuunin, anyway!"

Suddenly alarmed, Kakashi sharply turned his head towards Anko. "Something happened with the Hokage and Sakura?" he asked. The kunoichi grinned nervously.

"… _Oops_, wasn't supposed to let that slip…"

--

Naruto clutched the railing. He hadn't known who to cheer for since they were both his teammates. Even though it was between his teammates and friends, he was still excited about their match. He even thought of cheering for both of them, but… How could he cheer either one of them on at the moment? Sasuke was being a _dick_! He didn't _have_ to keep tugging the girl's hair like that. And Sakura… What was _wrong_ with her? She hadn't been acting right since the finals started. And then there was that weird thing she had said earlier… There was no way that he wanted the team to 'break' at all. The thought never even crossed his mind. Well, in the beginning—he had disliked Sasuke, after all.

"Wow… I know its Sasuke-kun and all, but does she have to look so feeble?" Ino muttered, crossing her arms. Naruto's blue eyes glanced at the blond kunoichi. "What's up with her?" So it was recognizable to others, too? Naruto narrowed his eyes as he continued to watch. His hands slipped from the railing.

"_Sasuke… Sakura-chan… Get it together already."_

--

"You should just give up and spare yourself…!" Sasuke continued to taunt his teammate. "I can't believe I thought someone like _you_ could even come close to me, _Sakura_!" Fingernails dug into the ground. The Uchiha didn't really notice this movement. Mayu bared her teeth, although no one could see it at the moment. He was beginning to call her Sakura more now, and it was getting to her. She wasn't… She wasn't Sakura… _She_ could not understand what she was feeling now. Discovering that she was _alone_ was… almost too much. "You think Naruto and I trained our asses off just to have you bringing us down?!"

Mayu opened her eyes. She… She wasn't alone. In a way, Naruto and Sasuke were just like her. They were her teammates and friends—they were her… family. _"But right now Sasuke's being a douche bag…" _She felt another yank. _"A mega douche bag…!"_

"Just give up, _Sakura_…! You obviously don't care about this anymore!" Sasuke pushed the kunoichi to the ground. Disappointment showed in his eyes as he watched her unmoving body. "Who the hell are you now?" he muttered.

Mayu pushed herself up. She was now on her hands and knees. A phantom grin appeared. "Who am I…?" she whispered. Sasuke didn't move. A heel suddenly connected with his jaw, sending him flying. He hadn't been expecting that. The Uchiha recovered in-flight and landed on his feet. He stared at the girl, who was now standing. Her back was to him. She sharply turned to face him. "I'm Ishikari Mayu, and you _better_ not forget it!"

"_Ishikari…? I thought it was Haruno."_ Genma silently watched the grinning girl. Determination and confidence had seemed to replace her clouded eyes. His eyes moved over to Sasuke. He looked… motivated now. _"Well, this might me an interesting match after all."_

"Thanks for saying all that stuff and reminding me, but now I'm gonna _have_ to wipe the floor with you!" Mayu bent her knees, a confident smirk playing on her face. Giving his own smirk, Sasuke stood straight. Finally, he thought.

"You think you've got what it takes with that level of skill?" He held out his hand, palm up. "If that's the case… Come!"

Mayu ran forward. Sasuke, however, did not move from his position. He wanted to wait and counter her attack when she was close enough. Big mistake on his part. Mayu had unexpectedly done a handstand. Her legs quickly moved towards Sasuke; her feet kicked him in the face. Bending her arms, she pushed her body up. She grabbed Sasuke by his shirt, landed, and then threw him over her, slamming him into the wall. The Uchiha fell to the ground, groaning. The kunoichi, smiling proudly, turned to face him. He stood up and rubbed his chin. Mayu crouched down, holding her hand out—palm up. She flexed her fingers, beckoning him. "_Come_…!" she simpered.

Smirking, Sasuke dashed toward the kunoichi, and Mayu did the same.

The two met in a collision of punch and kicks, most of them not getting through to their target. Mayu grunted when she felt Sasuke's fist connect with her stomach. He had picked up his speed. This forced her to do the same. Finally, her leg made contact with Sasuke's body. The Uchiha and Ishikari jumped away from each other. Sasuke reached for his holster again, pulling out three shuriken. He threw them at the airborne girl. She might have been 'the Dodge Ball Queen,' but there was no way she could avoid in midair. Surprisingly, though, Mayu moved her upper body down, and at the same time caught the shuriken whizzing pass. Without hesitation, she launched them back at Sasuke, who quickly moved to the side just as Mayu landed on her feet.

Both—shinobi and kunoichi—stared at each other for a second before running to the side. They continued to watch each other as they ran up the wall, using their chakra. They disappeared, only to reappear in another joust this time with kunai in their hand. Clang after clang entered the ears of those listening. The two were moving at such a fast pace, that they were barely visible to the untrained eye. But what was visible was the sparks the clash had created. With one last clink, the crowd could see the two ninja were practically head to head. Their hands were locked, while the other hands were holding one another's kunai back. Both looked determined to push the other back. Realizing that it was futile, the two separated.

Mayu kicked herself from the wall. Sasuke smirked and did the same. She was below him, falling. Thinking he had the advantage, the Uchiha prepared to launch multiple shuriken down at her. What he wasn't suspecting was for Mayu to quickly form hand signs. "**Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu**!" Fire seemed to erupt from the girl's mouth. It shot straight towards Sasuke. He could only look stunned before the giant fireball consumed his body. Mayu twisted her body to face the ground. She felt the heat fade, meaning the giant fireball was going higher as she descended. But as she neared the ground, she gasped at the sight of Sasuke's fist coming right at her. His powerful blow to the stomach sent the girl back up. He landed, only to propel himself back into the air, following after the kunoichi. It almost looked as if he was her shadow.

"You ready for this…?" Sasuke poked Mayu at a pressure point on her back.

"Sc-Screw you…" the kunoichi muttered, bringing her arm up, just in time to block Sasuke's kick to her left side.

The Uchiha switched and went for her right side. Anticipating this, Mayu moved to block that attack as well. But it was only a ploy move to distract her—his target was something else. Sasuke's leg moved over the other, twisting his body around to unite with a great back-fist to Mayu's face, sending the—hurting—kunoichi down. He twirled and followed up with a swinging clothesline that added force to the fall. Just as Mayu was about to hit the ground, Sasuke flipped and twisted around to swing his leg in a powerful kick—again—to her stomach. "**Lion's Barrage**!"

The Uchiha jumped away from the girl, who did not move. He noticed the crowd. Before they had been loud and they were complaining, but now they were all quiet. Sasuke's dark eyes shifted to Genma, who was looking at the girl with an unreadable expression. The shinobi put a hand on his chest. That attack had caused minor strain. Using it often wouldn't be wise. "What are you waiting for?" He addressed the proctor. "Call the match. It's over."

A pained chuckled reached his ears, causing Sasuke to look back at Mayu. The kunoichi stood up, wiping the blood from her chin and—possibly broken—nose as she did. She narrowed her eyes, slightly peeved that her teammate looked surprised at her recovery. It had hurt like hell, but she wasn't down for the count yet. "Call the match…?" she repeated. "I'm just getting started." Sasuke's stunned look transformed into an eager one.

"That's what I like to hear."

"YEAH, SAKURA-CHAN…! KICK HIS ASS! SASUKE, TAKE HER DOWN!" Naruto cheered for both his teammates. He totally ignored the stares that he got.

Keeping her eyes trained on Sasuke, Mayu brought her hand up. Green eyes watched dark eyes go wide as she bit down on her thumb, using her incisor tooth to pierce her skin. The kunoichi created hand signs at a rapid pace. Boar, Dog, Bird, Monkey, Ram… She slammed her left palm down on the ground. "**Ninja Art: Summoning Jutsu**!" A cloud of smoke formed around Mayu. Sasuke squinted, trying to see past the cloud, but it was fruitless. What had she summoned, he wondered.

Kakashi, when he was training him, said that Mitarashi Anko had the ability to convene snakes. There was a possibility that she had passed this ability down to the young kunoichi. But that conclusion wasn't very likely. _"Mayu doesn't like snakes, so I wouldn't think she would summon one."_ The smoke finally dissipated. Clearly, Sasuke could now see his teammate. For a moment, it appeared as if she hadn't summoned anything. Then he saw the black long bow and the quiver of arrows on her back. On the front of the long bow, there seemed to be a crest of some sorts (A/N: I'm sure you know what the crest looks like by now, so I won't describe it here). He smirked as his teammate prepared to fire off an arrow. "You think an arrow is going to hit me? Do you doubt my speed?"

"Do you doubt my aim?" The kunoichi pulled back the string, pulling back as far as she could. The wire moan in objection as the tension increased. Mayu let the arrow fly. Sasuke's mouth dropped open, feeling the arrow whiz pass his face. He heard it the thud, which indicated the arrow had been impaled into the wall behind him.

His dark eyes widen in disbelief. His skin had been pierced, and he was now bleeding from his cheek. It was not just a simple scratch either. _"So fast,"_ he thought, watching Mayu load another arrow. He had read something about arrows before. Depending on the power of the user, an arrow could have the potential to travel at blinding speeds or slow as a turtle. _"Just… how strong is she?"_ Concentrating, Sasuke closed his eyes. His eyebrows furrowed together. When he opened his eyes again, they were red—Sharingan red. Now was the time to be serious.

Mayu shot another arrow. This time, he could see it moving towards him. He quickly moved to the right, but the kunoichi wasted no time in fire another arrow. Arrow after arrow, he dodged with a frown. _"How the hell is she moving so fast?"_ Sasuke narrowed his eyes as he continued to evade the deadly attacks.

The kunoichi nearly hissed in frustration. _"Damn it…! He's as fast as Lee with weights on, isn't he?" _She was getting tired missing her mark. She didn't know how long she could keep this up. Her arms were starting to get tired. _"If this keeps up, I'm going to knock myself out!"_

Her speed declined, and Sasuke took notice of this right away. He prepared to move behind her. Mayu's eyes widen when the Uchiha suddenly disappeared from her sight. He had changed direction… That means he was going to…! She quickly released the wire of her bow and clutched both hands around the metal part of the weapon. She instinctively swung her weapon of choice around like a baseball bat. Clenching his teeth, Sasuke swiftly brought his arms up to block the hit. However, there was still enough force behind the hit to knock him away.

_"Damn, I missed my chance," _the Uchiha thought, flipping while still above ground. He put his above his head, planning to land on his hand, and then flip onto his feet. However, Mayu seemed to have other plans.

"Nana, here we go…!" Mayu pointed a finger.

A small black blur was suddenly seen at the corner of his eye. Sasuke then felt something collide with his wrist, causing his balance to be thrown off. He fell, ungracefully, to the ground on his back. _"What was-"_ his thoughts were cut off. Pain had spread throughout his entire body, causing him to cry out. Blood, mixed with spit, shot out of his open mouth. If had known his opponent would be physically stronger, he would have focused more on training his body, or at least his stomach—that seemed to be her favorite place to attack. The pain was nearly unbearable. It took a moment before his vision to become clear again. He reached up and grabbed her wrist. "Ho-How did you…?" he managed to whisper as blood slid down his face.

She smirked. His red eyes shifted. That's when he noticed the animal at her side. It was a larger than average black cat. He looked closer and realized that it was a black leopard. Its height reached up to his opponent's knees. Sasuke then knew that it must've been this feline who had knocked him off balance. This must have been _Nana_. Since when could she do an animal summoning? He supposed that that was part of the 'everything' she was going to tell him, Naruto, and Kakashi. "Did you really think I summoned just a weapon?" Mayu taunted. The black leopard growled menacingly, which caused Sasuke to flinch.

The Uchiha glared. He brought his feet up to kick Mayu in the face, but she only blocked with her right arm. Sasuke forced himself away from the kunoichi. He breathed deeply as he stared at her. She was unknowingly forcing him to go all out. Mayu grinned before she and her summon dashed toward him. Sasuke grimaced, and then shifted his weight to his back leg. He then performed a couple of hand signs. "**Fire Style: Phoenix Fire Jutsu**!"

Seeing many balls of fire coming towards her, Mayu stopped and jumped up to avoid the flames—as did the summon. She loaded an arrow, firing at will. Sasuke jumped back to dodge the hit. The arrow hit the ground with a thud. Mayu landed with a frown. She had no more arrows in her arsenal. Sasuke notice this as well.

The shinobi pulled out two scrolls from his back pouch. Mayu narrowed her eyes in confusion. The appearance of the two scrolls were puzzling—not to mention weird. Sasuke had never carried scrolls before. She watched her opponent set up the two scrolls on the ground. They stood neighboring one another. The kunoichi's eyes grew wide. She had recognized that posture and those hand signs.

"**Rising Twin Dragons**!"

Mayu watched her opponent jump up in between the spiraling scrolls. She gasped with wide green eyes, seeing the barrage of projectiles coming her way, and fast. Sasuke really _wasn't_ playing around! "SONNAVA BIT-" The weapons hit just about everywhere, causing dust to collect and cause a giant cloud to appear. The assortment of weapons continued to launch into the miasma of dust.

--

Tenten stood up in surprise. "What the heck…?!" She ignored the man behind her who told her to sit back down so he could see. "But that's-"

"Yes, that's your move." A familiar voice caught the teen's attention. She turned her brown eyes to the stairs. There, Hyuga Neji stood with his arms crossed. He was intensively watching the battle, brow furrowed in concentration. "His bloodline gives him that ability. He did see your match again that Sand kunoichi."

Frowning, Tenten turned her eyes back to the match. "How long have you been here?" she asked.

"Long enough…"

"That Uchiha Sasuke even used part of Lee's move. He's so strong, but then so is that girl. She's been able to keep up with him." Tenten bit her bottom lip. "I doubt she's a wind user like the Sand kunoichi. She won't be able to avoid the weapons."

"_Hm_…"

--

Sasuke panted heavily. He had dropped down to the ground just a second ago. The two scrolls fell to the ground not a moment later. That last attack took a lot of out him. Continuing to pant, he watched—through one eye—the dust slowly start to vanish. His eyes grew wide. His target had disappeared! There were many weapons littered the ground, and yet she and her feline partner were nowhere to be found. Sasuke winced, dropping to his knee. _"Damn… I didn't think she'd be this much of a challenge. I might even have to use… that!"_

Meanwhile, behind the safety of the tree, Mayu inhaled and exhaled intensely. She clutched her side, which was bleeding. She hadn't been fast enough. Her black leopard partner sniffed and licked at the injury, whining. Mayu pushed her companion away. "You stay here, Nana." She peeked from behind the tree to stare at the shinobi. _"He's just full of tricks, isn't he?!" _She narrowed her eyes. _"I didn't think I'd have to use that in this match, but he's not giving me much choice. It might not even be strong enough."_ The kunoichi pulled bandages from her pouch and tied them around her midsection. It would have to do for now. _"I need something to help me out, and I know just the thing…"_

The kunoichi stood up, and then stepped out of the cover of the tree. Sasuke saw her instantly. He quickly stood. Mayu ran towards him, two kunai in hand. The Uchiha did the same. He picked up his own weapon as he charged. He suddenly halted, and then flung the giant shuriken—the four-bladed shuriken. The lethal weapon sped towards Mayu with alarming speeds. The kunoichi stopped, gapping. She was too close to move away! She did the only thing she could think of. The girl dropped down to the ground. But she hadn't been fast enough. The spinning blades had cut right through her long black braid. Hugging the ground, Mayu heard the weapon embed itself into the wall, telling her it was safe to stand.

She didn't realize that the hair had been cut until she didn't feel the braid hit her back as she stood. She felt the hair in disbelief. Sasuke stared as if he couldn't believe what he had done. A horrified scream filled the stadium… yet it did not come from the fighting kunoichi. "Ma—I'm sorry… I didn't mean to-"

"Doesn't matter." She interrupted. She ran her fingers through her hair, unraveling the rest of the braid. The black hair fell. The severed hair ended just above her shoulders. "Let's finish this, Sasuke!"

The two ninja ran at each again.

--

"So… Why did you scream again?" Michiyo asked the girl sitting beside her. "You sounded as if you were getting murder." Those around the two were looking towards them, trying to find the answer to that question as well. They had been startled, not to mention slightly scared when the girl suddenly screamed like that.

Sakura wiped the tears from her face. "No-No reason," she mumbled, wiping at her eyes. _"That freak…! How could she let my hair get cut?! I look even weirder than with those boy muscles!"_ The people around her rolled their eyes and sighed, turning their attention back to the fight.

--

"Huh…?!" Sasuke had just finished watching his opponent throw down her weapons. Fighting with kunai for a few minutes was becoming tedious, but he didn't think she would actually drop them. _"What could she be thinking?"_

"_If this keeps up, I'm going to faint from the blood loss,"_ Mayu thought, staring into the suspicious eyes of the Uchiha. _"I have to end this…"_ But how could she…? Sasuke was standing there with his guard up. He was ready to attack or defend at the moment. In order for this to work, she needed him to be caught off guard. She gasped lightly, coming up with a solution. _"That's it!"_

"What are you waiting for? Come at me!" Mayu did not move from her spot. "Well…?"

"Oh my god…!" the girl suddenly shouted, pointing a finger. "It's the oldest trick in the book!"

"What?!" Sasuke turned his head away. Mayu had to force herself not to laugh as she raced through some hand signs. Realizing that he had been swindled, Sasuke all but growled. He turned his head back to Mayu, but by then it was too late.

"**Ishikari Style: Mind Transfer Jutsu**!"

The bodies of the two genin instantaneously went limp. For a few moments, the entire stadium was quiet. The audience was tense, anxious to see what would happen. _Sasuke_ suddenly busted out laughing. He held his stomach, laughing out how much it hurt. The crowd, surprised, nearly fell out of their seats. "That was hilarious! I-I-I can't believe you fell for something like that!" The boy guffawed while pointing at the kunoichi. _Mayu_ growled viciously.

"That was dirty trick, you stupid cocoon girl!"

"No it wasn't…! That was friggin' funny! Only an idiot would fall for that, bird brain!" A pink tint settled on the Genma's cheeks.

He had fallen for her trick as well.

"_Argh_…! What was the point of that, anyway?! I know what you're trying to do, and it's a stupid idea! We would be fighting each other with the same stuff! This battle could go on until we both tire from exhaustion! Is that what you want?!" Mayu ignored her teammate's question. A smirk appeared on Sasuke's face, causing a frown to appear on Sakura's. "What are you thinking?"

"Nothing, much… just my final attack." Sasuke's hands smacked together. "Release…!" The two minds were put back.

Sasuke jumped a few feet from the girl. If she had a final attack ready, then it was safe to say she was about to go all out. He narrowed his eyes. _"There's no way I'm giving her a chance for that!" _The Uchiha did several back flips. He pushed himself off the ground and up on the wall. He slid backwards, using chakra to remain on the wall of the stadium. The shinobi knelt down, forming a set of hand signs. He then grasped his left wrist and closed his eyes, preparing for his own final attack. _"You better not die, Mayu!"_

The Ishikari kunoichi stared up at her opponent from her place on the ground. _"To think he'd use that against me…"_ Instead of getting angry, she smiled. _"Thank you, Sasuke. You see me as a worthy—a strong enough challenger."_ She began performing her own set of hand signs. _"Don't worry… I've got something special for you!"_ The kunoichi closed her eyes in concentration. She held her left hand up, palm up to the sky.

Chakra quickly manifested in Sasuke's hand…

The necessary chakra from past Masters gathered in Mayu's hand…

His chakra started to crackle loudly and condense in the form of lightning…

Her chakra began to grow in the form of a flame…

Lightning was his to control…

Blue flames were hers to control…

Ready, Sasuke finally opened his red eyes…

Ready, Mayu finally opened her red eyes…

The Uchiha shinobi charged down the wall, the power in his hand creating a trench in the wall. His speed didn't falter as he neared the ground. He ran at Mayu, not reducing his speed at the sight of her arm, which was consumed by blue flames. The kunoichi suddenly put her hand down and charged at him as well. Judging from the power he was sensing, this collision would not be very pretty. But he could see it in her eyes—she was not going to hold back. Well, then, neither was he! Mayu pulled her arm back. Sasuke pulled his arm back. As they neared one another, they pushed their left arms forward. Closer and closer they got until they were a few inches away.

"**CHIDORI**!"

"**TSUKERU**!"

_**BOOOOOOOOOOM!**_

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Finished January 24, 2009

I really liked this chapter, and that's why it took so long. I spent so much time on it, so sorry for the wait. If you haven't realized yet, _Tsukeru_ is the name of Mayu's clan ultimate attack that TFK-fan118 made up, not me. She originally called it _The Flame in All of Us_ or _The Flame_ for short—most likely because she's _so_ in love with that band. Tsukeru is translated in this story for a number of reasons. One, Sasuke's and Naruto's ultimate attacks will be in Japanese, so why not Mayu's, too? I mean Sasuke doesn't say "Thousand Chirping Birds!" every time he launches his attack. Naruto's doesn't say swirling ball of… something every time he attacks, either. They say Chidori and Rasengan, so I'm going to go with that. Yes, I have her permission to do so.

**Shino and Chouji's fight**: Sorry I didn't describe it, but as I said before, I was really excited to write out Mayu and Sasuke's match. Sorry to those who were anticipating that…

**Sasuke and Mayu's fight**: I had so much fun with this, and it's _not even over yet_! Don't worry, though. The winner of their match will be announced during the next chapter. About Sasuke using Tenten's attack—I feel that he would have copied it if he'd seen it. I mean, it's an amazing attack, and I'm pretty sure he'd want it in his arsenal. He's got the ability, so he's gonna use it. About Nana—I really didn't want to use her in this match. I know that in case of summons, there's this whole blood bond thing, and whatever. And I realize that it's not Mayu's body, so it's not her blood, but she summoned her anyway. Yeah, I know this—and probably shouldn't have done it—but I felt that Mayu should show her Ishikari abilities to Konoha. Why…? Unfortunately, I can't tell you that because it concerns future chapters, and I don't want to spoil it for you! Like I said, the match isn't over yet, so stay tuned for the conclusion!

**Neji**: For those who have read _Our Lives in the Hurricane Chronicles_, by TFK-fan118, you all know who the little girl is that he thinks of. Yes, I'm going to have her in my story because I think she's an awesome character(s). I'm already thinking of ways she'll have a role in my story.

**The Sand/Sound Invasion**: Yes, that's still going to take place. How will the Hokage knowing change the way it turns out? Not gonna tell ya yet!

**Gaara and Ino's fight**: To tell you the truth, I'm pretty excited to do this match, too… so… the next chapter might not be out for awhile. Hopefully, once the fights are over, I can update quicker.

Next time: _The Thirst Within: Blood Over Flowers!_

I'm looking forward to seeing your amazing reviews!


	13. Blood Over Flowers

The power of both the Chidori and Tsukeru exploded when the two attacks slammed into one another. The impact created a massive cloud of dust and a blinding flash of light that masked the audience's vision. The explosion was loud, and it echoed throughout the entire village. The proctor, Genma, had to shield himself with his arms to avoid getting hit by fragments of the ground or wall. Two crashes followed the explosion. When the dust cloud settled, a pair of smoking craters was visible. There was no sign of Uchiha Sasuke or Haruno Sakura.

Genma slowly put his arms down and opened his eyes. His hazel eyes shifted from one smoking pit to the other. He couldn't tell which participant caused which pit to form. He, as well as the crowd, waited in anticipation. While most of the audience wanted the Uchiha to appear, the rest of them wanted the girl to win. She had shown so much strength... It was surprising that she could hold her own against someone like an Uchiha.

Suddenly, an arm broke through the hard dirt, drawing the attention of everyone. Panting heavily, Uchiha Sasuke pushed himself up from the ground. He held his left shoulder. His dark eyes stared at the other crater. He no longer had enough chakra to keep his Sharingan. He didn't think that his fight with Mayu would take so much out of him. He was lucky that he could still stand. His shoulders moved up and down as he breathed. Sasuke bit his bottom lip in order to stop the cry of pain that threatened to come out. _"That was some attack, Mayu."_ He slowly blinked. _"But in the end… I won."_

The Uchiha almost gasped when he heard the ground breaking. A fist shot out of the dirt. Seconds later, the top half of his opponent's body was visible. Sasuke mouth dropped opened at the sight of his teammate pushing herself out of the ground. The girl, coughing and panting, shakily stood. She wearily glared at Sasuke, who did the same. "Da-Damn it, Sasuke…! Why don't you just fain-faint?!" The girl continued to breathe deeply.

"Wh-What about yo-you?! How can you be as stro-strong as me?!"

"To survive on th-this team, I'd ha-have to be, don't I?"

The two stared at each other for a moment. Sasuke slowly released his shoulder, making up his mind. He saw that her weapon had disappeared, so that meant he didn't have to worry about a surprise attack from her feline partner, Nana. This was _it_… It was the last and final attack. Green eyes narrowed, seeing the stillness of her teammate. He was getting ready. Her body relaxed, only to tense up again. "Let's finish this…!" Sasuke called out.

"Hell yeah…! Get ready!"

The two ninja ran towards each other with determination in their eyes. This battle had proved to be the most thrilling fight they had ever been in. It wasn't just the strength of their opponent. It was also the relationship behind the two fighters. Their friendship and rivalry, although should have, made it so they wouldn't—couldn't—hold back against one another. This was the fight which would end their rivalry and draw them closer to one another. Hearing their third teammate calling out to them, they both brought their arms back in preparation.

It was almost as if it happened in slow motion. Their fists glided past the other, aiming towards the face. They both gritted their teeth, feeling knuckles against their cheek. Blood spewed from their mouths as they stumbled back. Following up was the two kicks that decided the battle. Mayu's leg made contact with Sasuke's chin, while his leg made contact with her nose. More blood spilled onto the ground as the two parted from one another through force. They fell to the ground, sliding to a stop a few feet away from the other fighter.

Genma shifted his eyes from the shinobi and kunoichi. Neither genin moved. He closed his eyes with a sigh. _"What explosive power… That girl—not only does she have the strength, she also used her brain in this match. If this was real, her team could have easily taken down Sasuke when he became distracted. And what an interesting way of doing it. Sasuke definitely has the strength, but he lacks strategy. He sure did become motivated when Sakura started to get serious, though. I wonder…"_ Genma opened his eyes and looked at both combatants again. Neither one had yet to move. The proctor cleared his throat.

"Due to the double knock-out between the fighters, Uchiha Sasuke and Haruno Sakura, I declare this match-" The man stopped and turned his eyes. He face showed astonishment. One of the participants was slowly standing up. The crowd also seemed to be in a stunned stupor. Genma shook his head. "Excuse the error… What I meant was…" The proctor raised his hand in favor of the standing genin. "The winner of the fourth match is… Uchiha Sasuke!"

--

The entire stadium erupted in thunderous applause and cheers, which shook the very foundation of the arena. The vociferous roar of '_U-chi-ha_!' filled the stadium and echoed throughout the village. The fight had proved to be much more than what anyone expected from the two genin. Even though it was an Uchiha, he seemed to be much stronger than expected. And the girl—she showed truly surprising valor against her opponent. It was as if gender did not matter in this match. Neither fighter held back just because of sexual characteristics. Overall, it was a good match, indeed.

Sakura smirked triumphantly as if she knew all along that Sasuke would win. She admitted that she was a little worried with the impostor when she used some type of jutsu that had switched their minds around. The jutsu was similar to Ino's jutsu, but obviously different. For one, when the impostor returned to her body, she had the Sharingan. Sakura was sure she wasn't the only one who noticed this. How did she manage to copy his advanced bloodline in the first place…? That girl was a _freak_ and she deserved to lose. _"Just goes to show you that the originals are always better!" _Her cocky smirk turned into a grin. _"I just knew Sasuke-kun was going to win!"_

Blue eyes moved over to the woman beside her. Michiyo had been oddly quiet when the winner was announced. Even now, she hadn't said a thing. Sakura realized that her body was shaking. Her fists were clenched in her lap. It looked as if she were about to cry… "Mo-Michiyo-san, are you alrigh-" The woman suddenly stood up, interrupting Sakura's question. She cupped her hands around her mouth and inhaled. Sakura's blue eyes grew wide. She wasn't about to scream, was she…?

"HARUNO…!" the woman shouted. Those around her looked at the woman in surprise. "YEAH, THAT'S MY BABY! _HARUNO_…! HA-RU-NO…! HA-RU-NO…! HA-RU-NO…! HA-RU-NO…! HA-RU-NO…!" The older Haruno began chanting her own last name. Sakura looked around to see that everyone within hearing range was staring at her mother like she was insane.

"Mi-Michiyo-san…! Everyone's staring!!!" She tried to get her mother to calm down, but the woman ignored her and continued to chant.

Surprisingly, moments later, those around the two joined in with the exuberant women. Sakura looked for left to right in shock. Her mother's cheering had triggered a massive wave of cheering for the fallen Haruno. The crowd, although still cheering for Sasuke, they were now cheering for the impostor as well…! Sakura narrowed her eyes in anger. She clenched her teeth, irritated beyond normal. She crossed her arms, nails digging into her skin.

"_Damn it…! They're applauding my name, yet it's not me! It's an impostor! She wasn't even that good! Why do they cheer for her when she lost…?!"_

--

The copy ninja stared at the kunoichi beside him. She looked as stunned as he felt. His eye moved back to the field. He saw that _Sakura_ was getting carried away by two medic ninja; Sasuke trailed after them, looking just as beat up as his teammate was. "Did… Did you teach her that move?" he asked as he listened to the audience chant and scream '_U-chi-ha_!' and '_Ha-ru-no_!' as if they had just witnessed the most amazing thing.

"Who me…?" Anko asked; her eyes still wide. "No way, did I teach her something like that. She learned that jutsu all on her own. What about you, Hatake? I can't believe you taught him the Raikiri…! That attack could have killed her?! What was he thinking?!"

"For the record, it's called Chidori. That is what he learned." Kakashi spoke calmly as if he didn't just get yelled at by his kunoichi comrade. "Second… I believe Sasuke was _forced_ to use it." Anko gave the copy ninja a skeptical look. "As you've seen, Sakura is not an average ninja. I told Sasuke only to use it as a last resort. I believe Sakura forced him into a corner. Sasuke probably thought the only way to win against her was to use the Chidori. It's amazing that she could counter it the way she did and still stand. I'm truly impressed with the results of her training." Anko stared at Kakashi for a moment. She, realizing that it was a compliment towards her, grinned.

"Yeah, well, she did have _me_ training her! The girl kicks ass just like her sensei!"

Kakashi smiled underneath.

--

Naruto was practically gushing exhilaration. "That was AWESOME…!" he shouted. "Sakura-chan and Sasuke kicked major _ass_!" His hyper attitude slowly began to fade and a thoughtful looked crossed his face. "I… I'm jealous… They got so much stronger." He said this mostly to himself, but Ino still heard. Her hands clutched the railing. Her jaw was set. Ever since her friend had gotten serious in her match, Ino had been drawn in like a moth to a flame.

_"You're not the only one, Naruto…"_ Her grip got tighter. _"Sakura really has gotten stronger. Am I weaker than her now?"_ Her baby blue eyes narrowed, and then she sighed, closing her eyes as she did. _"Great, now I feel even less confident about my match."_ Ino slowly reopened her eyes. She looked towards her opponent. His arms were crossed. She could see his body trembling as if he could barely hold… _something_ in. His body suddenly stopped its shaking. Ino swallowed hard as his sea green eyes locked with hers. His lip twitched. _"Shit!"_ she thought, turning away.

The Yamanaka turned and moved towards the stairs. Naruto caught her movement and also turned. "Hey, Ino…! Where ya going? Isn't your match next?" The blond kunoichi involuntarily froze at his question. Thanks for reminding me, she thought, frowning.

"I'm going to visit Sasuke-kun and Sakura." She turned her head slightly at her fellow Leaf ninja. "Shouldn't you be doing the same? After all, they're _your_ teammates." Naruto's eyes widen in realization. He took off, down the stairs. He was so fast that Ino could hardly see him blur pass her. "Damn, Naruto…" she muttered, and then continued to move forward.

"Don't test my patience, girl." Ino froze again at his cold voice. She could feel eyes on her back, which caused her to feel self-conscious. She clenched her teeth, and then took off running.

The Sand ninja smirked, and then turned his eyes away from where the girl had disappeared. Kankuro looked back and forth between his brother and the spot where that Leaf kunoichi had been. _"What the hell…?"_ he thought. He rarely had seen his brother like this. _"Don't tell me he's excited…! He'd better not screw up the plan!"_ Kankuro continued to watch his body continue to twitch. This feeling he was getting from Gaara—it was definitely fear. Fear was something he was accustomed to by now in the presence of his younger sibling. But he had only felt this large amount of fear a few times. It had been worse when Gaara transformed. He's becoming too unstable, Kankuro realized. The puppet ninja slowly stepped away from his brother.

Gaara was none the wiser…

--

Eyelids slowly opened to reveal clouded green orbs. Through blurry sight, Mayu was able to make out two figures. She felt hands, roaming across her body, but oddly enough, she didn't actually _feel_ them. _"Medic nin…" _She recognized the strange outfits they always wore. She closed her eyes again. Her arm hurt, her legs hurt, her nose _definitely_ hurt.

"Please try not to move, Haruno-san." A voice told her. She assumed that it was one of the medic ninja talking. She didn't bother to open her eyes again. "We're almost finished healing your body." The same voice became to tell her about her injuries. Among her injuries were broken bones, broken nose, dislocated shoulder, and several cuts and bruises. Judging from what he had to say, they had already finished healing her. Now, they were just taking precaution and making sure she was fully healed. However, it would take some time before her chakra returned to full capacity.

"How is she?" Mayu perked up a bit. It was a new, familiar voice. She didn't feel hands hovering over her body anymore, so she slowly sat up. She cracked one eye open. Her legs were dangled over the side of the medical bed. She stared at the floor for a moment, waiting until her sight cleared up. She slowly turned her head towards the door. There, leaning against the door frame for support, stood Uchiha Sasuke. Her mouth split into a weary grin. "You look like shit." Mayu chuckled lightly.

"You don't look too good yourself, cupcake."

The two medics left the room. Moments after, Sasuke limped over towards the bed Mayu was sitting on. He hopped up and sat next to her. He clutched his knee and breathed deeply. "How… How ya holding up?" Green eyes stared at Sasuke's face before diverting towards the ground.

"You broke my nose."

"You burned a hole through my clothes and gave me 2nd degree burns."

"_Ouch_…"

"Yeah, I know."

"They took care of you, didn't they?" Mayu asked. Sasuke nodded his head to answer her question.

"Yeah, but it'll take some time before I can move normally." The room became silent. Sasuke did not mind the silence. In a way, the calmness was soothing. His body relaxed the longer the silence continued. It was when Mayu rested her head on his shoulder did he tense up again. "Mayu…?" He turned his head, but her eyes were elsewhere.

"I lost," she murmured. It wasn't a question, but rather a statement.

"Hn…"

"I worked so hard to beat you, but I still lost," the girl continued. Sasuke didn't respond to her words. After a few moments, Mayu lifted her head and gave the Uchiha a flat look. "Ya know, Sasuke, this is the part where you console me." Sasuke almost rolled his eyes. "You're supposed to be like 'Oh, Mayu…! You did your best and you kicked my ass. I wouldn't want anyone else as an opponent!' You're not supposed to respond with nothing!" Sasuke shoved her lightly.

"Quit trying to sound like me." Mayu only pouted. "And there's no need to say something that you already know." The kunoichi smiled.

"Really…?"

"Of course… cocoon gi—hey, what are you doing?! Get off!"

"Thank you so much, Sasuke!" Mayu had wrapped her arms around the Uchiha and was hugging him tightly.

Sasuke, again, tried to protest and push her away, but the girl wouldn't budge. He gave up with a small sigh. He rolled his dark eyes before patting her lightly on the back. His hand unconsciously moved up to feel the cut hair. He narrowed his dark eyes. It was at that moment that Mayu lifted her head, sniffing and rubbing at her eyes. "I want to see…" His unusually soft tone caused the kunoichi to look at him in surprise. "I want to see… your face." Mayu looked at Sasuke like he was stupid. "I meant your real face, dumb ass…! I want to see what you really look like."

"Oh… Well, you're just gonna have to wait." Mayu stared straight ahead as she spoke. "Along with telling you, Naruto, and Kakashi-sensei everything, I will also reveal my true face." She dug around in her pocket and pulled out a capsule. Sasuke stared at it in disbelief. Oblivious to his stare, Mayu popped a pill in her mouth. She sighed when she felt her chakra reserve swell. Finally, she felt his eyes. "What?"

"You had those the entire time?!"

"Yeah, so…?"

"You could've won our match!"

"That would be cheating, Sasuke." She pulled another pill from the capsule. "Here!" Mayu shoved it into his gapping mouth before he could stop her. Almost instantly, the Uchiha felt better.

"You idiot…" he murmured.

"Yah, whatever…!" The girl looked prepared to jump. Sasuke saw this and began to warn her.

"_Uh_, I wouldn't do that-" He was interrupted by a cry of pain. The girl fell flat on her face. Sasuke sighed when she didn't move, probably embarrassed or in too much pain, or both… "Good job, cocoon girl." Sarcasm dripped from his voice as he hopped off the bed.

Mayu slowly turned over, groaning. Sasuke couldn't help but grin at her expression. She glared up at him. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?!" She kicked his leg. Surprised by her quick action, Sasuke didn't try to stop himself from falling… right on top of her. Realizing the position they were now in, green eyes grew wide as the kunoichi's face turned red.

"SASUKE-TEME…! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING TO SAKURA-CHAN…?!" Instead of yelling at her, like he wanted to do, Sasuke turned his head towards the door where his teammate's loud voice caught his attention. His mouth dropped open at seeing, not only Naruto, but Kakashi, Anko, and Ino looking at him and his position. Amused, bewildered, angry, and devastated expressions were on their faces. Sasuke panicked, eyes growing wide.

"This is _not_ what it looks like!!"

--

The chants of 'Uchiha' and 'Haruno' slowly began to die down. The Hokage took this time to take a glance at the Kazekage. He noticed the small movement under his veil. The Third almost shivered. It had appeared as if the Kazekage was licking his lips. It was an action that only _he_ did when he was excited about something, which was creepy as all get out. "Impressed by the last match, Kazekage-sama…?" The older man spoke up. This seemed to snap the man out of his daydream.

"Yes… very _extraordinary_." Underneath his veil, the man smirked. "To show off her skills, your Uchiha was the best opponent she could go up against. I do believe this was the best match up I have seen so far. What extreme _talents_ they both have, _eh_?" The Hokage nodded his head in agreement. "I'm quite taken with both of them."

"_Of course you are…"_ The Hokage gave a quick glare in his direction. _"Orochimaru…!"_

Of course he knew that the _Kazekage_ was a fraud. That girl, Kin, had told him that the Snake Sanin would disguise himself as the Sand's leader. If that was true, then where was the real Kazekage…? Dead, she had told them. Orochimaru and several of his men had disposed of the village's leader and his followers. Apparently, the Sand Village had no idea of this, but they still knew of the war, according to the girl. Long before his death, the real Kazekage had made a deal with Orochimaru to destroy the Leaf village. Well, that definitely wouldn't be happening today…

"Enough about their match… The next match should be interesting as well. Your son is fighting, is he not?"

"_Ah_, yes… Our Gaara will be fighting one of your Leaf ninja. But, Hokage-sama, I assure you it won't be that interesting. He's going up against a no name."

"You said that earlier, Kazekage-sama. You should give Leaf ninja the benefit of the doubt more. After all, these Leaf genin have managed to overpower your Sand genin each time they are paired up."

"As you already know, power is not the key to becoming a chuunin."

"True, true…"

The two _leaders_ continued to watch the field, both thinking of the invasion that would commence during this next match.

--

Tsuchi Kin released a sigh. Finally, the chanting had stopped. Her grip on Akamaru loosened. She sighed again, closing her eyes. _"Great, now I have to add intense burning to my nightmares." _The missing ninja mentally shook her head. Now wasn't the time to be thinking of personal affairs. Before, she had not been sure when the invasion would start, but now she was positive. The fifth match with Gaara was the trigger for the war. There had been suspicion of it happening during the Uchiha's match, but that confirmed that that theory was incorrect.

Kin's dark eyes zoned in on Hinata, the girl she had befriended. The Hyuga heir was, fortunately, carrying her weapon's pouch and her shuriken holster. She had convinced the girl to bring it along with her. Her eyes shifted over to Kiba, who had his eyes on the battle field. He—Kin really didn't know what to label him as. They fought with each other like cats and dogs. Several times, there had been blood involved in their daily fights. But… she supposed she did care for him. He somewhat reminded her of Zaku…

Kiba felt eyes on him, so he turned. Kin was staring intensely at him. "What?" he asked slightly freaked out. The girl didn't answer. She only looked away. Kiba frowned. She had been acting strange all day. She had been come up with this lame ass story about Naruto wanting to fight him, which is why she urged him to bring weapons. He had brought his ninja gear just to appease her. She had almost gone on a rampage, after all. And his mother, Tsume, was behind the girl a hundred percent. It was maddening. It was as if they knew a secret and would not tell him about it.

"Kiba-kun, Kin-san, what did you think of that match?" Hinata asked, directing their attention to her. "Sakura-chan was amazing. I never thought their battle would get so intense."

"I know what you mean, Hinata." Kiba turned his eyes back to the arena. People were picking up the weapons that were scattered about. "I thought she would rely on tricks to win against him. Use his weaknesses like she did against you." Hinata blushed and poked her fingers together at Kiba's comment. Naruto wasn't her _weakness_… was he? "This fight was awesome. They attacked each other like they had something to lose! It was better than I thought it was going to be. What about you, Kin?"

"I…" She stared down at the puppy in her arms. He looked back up at her, and then barked. "It was okay."

"That's all you have to say?" Kiba grinned. "You were practically a critic when Chouji and Shino were fighting each other."

"Critic…?!" Kin hissed. "You've got a lot of nerve, mutt! You're the one who sounded like a frickin' announcer the _entire_ time…!"

"What'd you say…?!"

Hinata, sensing another fight about to erupt, cleared her throat loudly. The two settled for glaring at each other instead. "Kiba-kun, I'm surprised you did not cheer for Sakura-chan. You had a bit of a crush on her, did you not?" The Inuzuka grew red in the face. He had told her that in confidence! When did Hinata ever get so impish? Kin stared incredulously at Kiba as if she couldn't believe it.

"You _liked_ that craz-" Kin pressed her lips together to prevent herself from finishing. She didn't think Hinata would appreciate her calling one of her friends a 'crazy ass monster with a kitty complex.'

The Inuzuka huffed indignantly. "It was a long time ago—back when I first started going to the Academy. I don't even know why I liked her in the first place!" The genin crossed his arms and turned away. "Why are you bringing up old shit, anyway, Hinata?" He was slightly angry that that little secret had come out… in front of Kin, no less… The Hyuga heir only covered up a smile with her fingertips.

"No reason, Kiba-kun…" she answered. _"How dare you say Naruto-kun is my weakness in front of Kin-san?!_"

"Besides…" The dog-user gave a sly smirk. Kin involuntarily tensed up because of his stare. Kiba grabbed her chin, forcing her head closer to his. "Kin's the only bitch I have eyes for." He said this in a teasing manner. In the Inuzuka family, that term was generally a compliment to a female. But it still pissed Kin off to be called that. Not only was he being sarcastic, but he was using such moronic techniques to rile her up. Hinata sighed as Kin began insulting Kiba, which set off another fight.

Akamaru looked back and forth between his partner and his new playmate before hopping into Hinata's lap to avoid getting punched. He yipped at their behavior. The heir nodded her head in agreement. She held the puppy up to her face so that their noses were almost touching. "Akamaru-kun… I think we're the only _normal_ ones right now." Her two friends turned to her with disbelieving looks on their faces.

"_Huh_?! Hinata-chan…!" Kin became flustered.

"What does that supposed to mean?!" Kiba growled.

--

"Ino-chan…" The female Yamanaka heard her friend calling out to her, yet she did not move her blue eyes away from the window. "Is there something wrong?" The girl's question made Ino smile—yet it was strangely bitter.

"I'm surprised, Sakura… When your hair was cut—shorter than mine—you barely batted an eyelash." Mayu blinked. Ino was obviously trying to change the subject.

"Well, it's like you said." She shrugged. "Kunoichi don't need something as trivial as long hair. Besides, short hair suites me, doesn't it?"

"No, this haircut looks like an amateur did it," Ino told her bluntly. Mayu's eye twitched. The Yamanaka turned and grinned cheekily at her friend. "You should go to the salon to make it look presentably, Sakura-_chan_."

"Keep talking like that and I _will_ kick you!" Ino only giggled at the invalid threat. "But anyway… Answer my question, Ino. There's something wrong, isn't it?"

The blond abruptly stopped her snickering. She frowned as she turned her eyes to the floor. No longer could she look at her friend—her friend who had clearly surpassed her in strength. She squeezed her eyes shut as this realization dawned on her. Mayu stared at Ino in concern, yet did not speak. "My match… As soon as they're finished picking up after your match, my match is going to begin. After watching you and Sasuke-kun fight, I became conscious of the fact that I'm not even as _half_ as strong as you are! Of all people, you went head to head against Uchiha Sasuke and could have even won against him. That's something that I could never do because I'm not strong enough. If I can't even beat you, there's no way that I stand a chance against _him_!" Ino did not realize that tears were running down her face. She clenched her fists at her sides. "You have grown so much, but I'm still the weak little girl that-"

A resounding slap echoed throughout the room. Stunned, Ino could only blink. She slowly turned her eyes back to her friend. Mayu had hopped over the bed, quickly moved towards Ino, and then smacked her across the face. Ino blinked again, not believing that _Sakura_ had slapped her. She placed a hand over her now red cheek. Mayu lowered her hand as she glared. "Why the hell are you comparing yourself to me…?! Ino would have never done such a thing! You may not have been my favorite kunoichi, but you still had my respect because it wasn't you who ended yo—our friendship! I always thought that you had the potential to be one of the strongest kunoichi in this village!" The angered girl pointed a finger. "But what I see in front of me is a _girl_—not a kunoichi—who has given up before the fight has even started! Don't go predicting your future based on what you have seen someone else do! Just because I went up against Sasuke and almost won, doesn't mean the outcome of a fight between us is decided! Until the day comes when we are pitted against one another, don't you _dare _try to get all sissified on me again! Ino-chan's not like that! If you ever cry for a reason as stupid as this again in front of me, I swear I'll bitch slap you again! Now go out there-" she pointed towards the door. "-And beat the shit outta Gaara-kun!" The girl's fierce look suddenly turned into a surprised and embarrassed expression. "Wait, that's not what I meant! Don't beat him too badly—I mean… _Uh_… Let me try that again. What I meant was-"

The girl became too startled to finish her sentence. Ino had wrapped her arms around her, drawing her close into a hug. Mayu blinked at the sign of affection. Ino never really showed affection towards anyone other than Sasuke. The slightly confused kunoichi slowly returned the hug. She could feel Ino's body tremble. She felt the wetness from her tears on her shoulder. "Sa-Sakura-chan…!" Ino cried. "Why couldn't it always be this way? Why did you end our friendship before it could evolve into this…?!"

"… Idiot, we _are_ friends, and I'm sorry for doing that." Mayu pushed the girl away, but still held her at arms length. "Now stop crying, Ino." The Yamanaka sniffed a few time before wiping her tears away. "As kunoichi, we're not supposed to show our tears often, right?" Mayu grinned, trying to lighten the mood. Ino gave a small smile, wiping under her nose.

"Right," she agreed.

Mayu dropped her arms, allowing Ino to turn away and fix herself up. The girl blinked again. She scratched her head as she watched the Yamanaka. _"That was weird. I've never seen Ino break down like that before. I really hope she doesn't cry like that again. How strange…!"_ The blond female suddenly ran towards the door, but she did not leave. "Ino-chan…?" The purple-clad kunoichi had her back to Mayu, but on her face was a smile.

"Watch me, Sakura-chan…! I'm not going to show him any mercy!" she sounded confident. Mayu smiled—glad to know that the blond was back to normal. "And…" The Ishikari stared at Ino's back expectedly. "I've decided to give up on Sasuke-kun."

"_Hm_…? Why? I had _just_ convinced him to kiss you! I can get him to do more if you wait!" Ino shook her head and laughed. "What's so funny?"

"I just don't want to get in the way. Since we are friends, I can't let a boy come between us again. That'd be stupid and pointless," the blond told her.

"I'm not sure what you mean, but okay…" Ino laughed again, and then slid the door open. Two ninja came stumbling in causing her to back up. "Sasuke, Naruto…? Were you listening this entire time?!" Mayu yelled. Naruto laughed nervously.

"No, no…! We just came to tell Ino that the proctor is ready to start! Right, Sasuke?"

"Ye-Yeah… That's it," Sasuke agreed. "And besides, Chouji and Temari are in here! So what if we might have overheard?" Mayu sighed, crossing her arms.

"You guys are idiots," she muttered. She turned towards the two people that Sasuke mentioned. "Chouji and Temari are unconscious! So you _were_ listening this entire time!"

"What a team," Ino snickered on her way out.

--

Sakura instantly perked up upon seeing her rival finally walking towards the proctor. Ino had been her childhood friend, and then she turned into her rival because of her crush on Sasuke. Sakura had ended their friendship at a young age in order to compete properly for the handsome Uchiha. Sakura frowned as Ino stood opposite of her opponent—that freaky looking shinobi from the Sand village. She had noticed that the blond kunoichi had cut her hair to the point that it was visible. Sakura knew that Ino would never cut her hair. She knew that her rival wanted to keep it long for Sasuke since he likes girl with long hair. _"Could it be that Ino has given up on Sasuke-kun?"_

The young girl bowed her head slightly, yet still kept her eyes on the blond kunoichi. Sakura knitted black eyebrows together. Ino must've gotten stronger if she could get to the finals of the Chuunin Exam. _"And look at that confident smirk on her face! It's like she knows she going to win! That kid must be pretty weak…" _Sakura tried to assure herself. Ino might have been stronger than her when they were kids, but she had gotten stronger over the course of last month. Sakura was definitely stronger than Ino right now. _"Sasuke-kun will be so impressed with my newfound strength!"_ Sakura smiled, holding back a squeal.

--

The two fighters stared at each other. Slightly unnerved by the maniacal gleam in the Sand shinobi's eyes, Ino frowned. She could tell that he was more... _thrilled_. Clearly he had been waiting for this match with zeal. Did he really want to kill her that badly? That question alone made the blond kunoichi bit her lip. She then closed her eyes, remembering her friend's words to her. She couldn't let that look get to her. Blue eyes slowly opened to look into sea green ones. In order to actually beat him using his weakness, she had to look pass his appearance. It was that or be killed because of hesitation. And that definitely was not going to happen—not after what Sakura had just told her.

Instead of looking pass his appearance, however, Ino stared closely at him—studying his face, legs, and arms. If she hadn't already seen him fight, she would have never guessed he was a ninja. It appeared that he had never worked out a day in his life. There was hardly any muscle on his arms. He looked dead tired—almost scary because of those dark rings around his eyes. It occurred to Ino that he probably did not sleep at all, judging by how wide the rings were. Whatever the case was, it didn't stop his sand from fighting for him. She absolutely had to break through every single grain of sand if she wanted to win. Good thing she studied more than just the Yamanaka jutsu…

"Girl…!"

Ino mentally gave a sigh. "My _name_ is Ino!" She glared fiercely. Her look and her words were ignored.

"You better entertain me for as long as you can—they will be your last minutes."

"Was that supposed to be a threat?" The Yamanaka kunoichi scoffed. A grin slowly spread across her face. Gaara frowned at the secure look. His prey was not supposed to be looking this way. Fear should have been there, not confidence. He would have to replace that. "Let me tell you something, Gaara." Ino continued, oblivious to her opponent's thoughts. "If it hadn't been for Uchiha Sasuke, _I_ would have been the number one rookie of this year! My name is Yamanaka Ino and I _won't_ be defeated!"

"_Hmph_… Show me."

Genma raised an eyebrow at her bold statement. He looked up in thought. Her statement had been correct. In the Academy, her taijutsu was above average and so was her ninjutsu. If she had an advanced bloodline, she probably would have been Sasuke's equal in every way. With her skills, she came second only to him. And considering the fact that her father might have trained her for this, there was no telling how strong she'd become over the month. Genma smirked, hoping this battle was just as good as the last one. He raised his hand.

"The fifth match between Yamanaka Ino and Gaara-" He moved away from the two as he made a slicing motion with his arm. "Begin…!"

--

Ino jumped away, putting some distance between herself and her opponent. Immediately, her plans for this match ran through her head as her blue eyes focused solely on Gaara. It would be hard to follow through with these plans, but if they worked, the match would end in her favor. His fight with Rock Lee also went through her mind. Judging from that battle alone, she knew it would take much more than taijutsu and speed to defeat this ninja. That is why she trained harder than she had ever trained before. Out of all the fighting she did, this would probably be her toughest fight yet.

Sand suddenly hovered out of the shinobi's gourd. Ino shifted her heel, but then raised an eyebrow when the sand seemed to freeze. A surprised look replaced the glare that he had been giving her. Gaara grabbed his head as if it hurt him, and then began speaking—but oddly enough, it wasn't her he was speaking to. "Forgive me… mother… It's been… a long time since… you've absorbed any blood… Don't worry, though… This blood will be nice… This blood will taste good." His dilating sea green eyes honed in on the blond kunoichi, causing her to flinch.

_"What's this guy's deal?!"_ Ino narrowed her eyes as the sand dropped to the ground. He seemed to be much more of a psychopath than she first thought—a homicidal psychopath. The kunoichi swallowed the sudden lump in her throat. She barely heard whatever Gaara had just said to her—at least she _thought_ he was talking to her this time. Ino forced herself to calm down. The time for being scared had already passed. It was now time for action. Gaara of the sand was going down!

Ino quickly took out three kunai and launched them at her opponent. As expected, Gaara's sand came up and stopped the weapons from reaching him. However, this time, the sand molded into the shape of Gaara himself. The sand clone had caught all three kunai. That's new, Ino thought. She ran forward, taking to the air when a pillar of sand shot out from the clone's chest. As she descended, the clone returned her kunai full force. Gritting her teeth, Ino twisted her body. The weapons narrowly missed her skin.

She dropped down to the ground, and not missing a beat, she ran at Gaara again. And once again, sand shot out from the clone. Instead of jumping up again, though, Ino twirled on her heel, successfully dodging the sand attack. She flicked her wrist and a kunai slipped out of her sleeve and into her awaiting hand. Still running, she decapitated the sand clone and continued onward to her real enemy. Gaara remained impassive even as the sharp kunai came closer and closer to his face. The blade stopped mere inches from the Sand shinobi's face. The sand had come and wrapped itself around Ino's wrist and midsection.

His sea green eyes stared at the tip of the kunai before moving towards Ino's blue eyes. More sand wrapped itself around the kunoichi—her other wrist and her ankles. "A disappointment," he commented, watching his sand slowly crush the girl. The kunai fell from her hand and dropped to Gaara's feet. Ino, though, had yet to scream, which slightly ignored her opponent. The sand squeezed harder—so much harder that the replacement log smashed under the pressure. Gaara's impassive look turned to surprise, hearing a distinct sizzling noise. Explosive notes layered the log and all of them were the big ones.

The explosion that followed had been great. The power and force of the detonation sent Gaara flying. His back slammed against the ground, sliding to a halt. Meanwhile, above him, Ino began her fall. She switched from a spinning dive form to a curled up ball form. She continued to switch, spinning and twisted her body to gain speed and momentum. Finally, releasing a battle cry, she pushed her feet forward so they'd hit first. Her two feet made contact with Gaara's chest. The impact of her attacked caused the ground underneath Gaara to crack and give away, causing a dent to form.

The purple-clad kunoichi quickly leaped from Gaara before his sand came to his aid. She landed a few feet away. She flicked her bang away from her face with a smirk. "Did that get through to you?" The smirked remain when she did not get a respond from the Sand shinobi. Her blue eyes narrowed when she noticed the sand armor had prevented him from taking the full effects of her last attack. _"This sand is getting really troublesome…"_ Gaara stood. Cracks and split armor were visible all over his arms and face. Fractures of his sand armor dropped to his feet. Ino lost her smirk. "I guess I'll just have to go right through it."

The female Yamanaka took two kunai from her back pouch. Her fingers swirled the kunai around. She tossed them up, only to catch them again in opposite hands. "I didn't think I'd have to use this so soon-" She crossed the two kunai in an 'X' shape. "-But it seems like you're not giving me much choice, _Gaara_."

The red-haired shinobi frowned, already his armor had moved back into place. His prey had proved to be stronger than he first thought. She had actually managed to hit him, but why did she seem so confident? And what exactly was she about to do? Nothing so far could get pass his sand. Even speed hadn't been enough to defeat him. The blond kunoichi should have given up, or at least should have been discouraged by now. But that definitely wasn't the case for the blond kunoichi who was charging at him, kunai in each hand. _"Stupid girl."_ The sand hovered around him, and then blasted out as Ino grew near.

Using her chakra, the Yamanaka gained a burst of speed. She dodged left and right, effectively dodging the deadly sand vines. At high-speed, Ino slid along the ground, moving towards Gaara. Moments before impact, everything seemed to slow down. Sand, like normal, came up to block, but Ino slashed at the sand, yet did not exactly hit. But it didn't stop the sand to seemingly split, allowing the kunoichi to get through. Sea green eyes grew wide in shock as the second slash came. Time seemed to be speed up again. In a blink of an eye, Ino stood opposite of where she had been. Her arms were overlapping each other. Kunai were in her hand, tips still pointed to her opponent. Gaara, still shocked, remained in the same spot. The sand around him trembled as well as his own body.

Ignoring the blood sliding down her arms and legs—she hadn't been fast enough—Ino stood up straight and turned to face her opponent. She bent her knees and slid forward a bit. Her hair tie snapped, allowing her hair to fall around her head. She ignored this, too, watching Gaara quiver. She had gotten him—that much she could tell. His leg looked as if it were about to give out at any moment. "Are you surprised, Gaara?" She taunted him, yet her mind was on her own body. She knew she wouldn't be able to take another 'in-your-face' attack from him. The cuts on her arms were already starting to sting. "**Chakra Dual Swords**… Successful."

--

"Incredible," Neji remarked. His advanced bloodline had been turned on. His pale eyes were trained solely on Gaara. Tenten turned her brown eyes to him in confusion. She asked him what was so incredible. "You cannot see it, but with these eyes, I can. That girl, Ino, not only found ways pass his sand, she also managed to hurt him."

"What? But she's the only one bleeding!"

"Yes, but internally…" Neji smirked as his teammate's eyes grew wide. "Using those kunai as mediums, she condensed her chakra into twin swords. As you know, chakra can't cut flesh, but the damage it could do on the inside is great. She severed his muscles in his leg so that he could no longer use it. What a smart girl—she's done her research." Tenten frowned at the grin on her teammate's face. He didn't usually sound so impressed when talking about someone's battle style…

"Could she beat him like this?" A new voice captured their attention. Neji smirked, seeing his other teammate on the stairs. Rock Lee and his sensei had arrived as well. The two look-a-likes had actually arrived before Sasuke and Mayu's match yet did not want to look away from the fight, so they waited until it was over to find Neji and Tenten.

"It's possible," Neji answered, turning his eyes back to the current match. "But it's only a minor possibility. It's not he who controls the sand all the time."

--

Ino's smirk grew as Gaara finally fell to his knee. The effects of his severed muscle finally took its toll. _"He's probably confused."_ She jumped up and over the red head. Weeks of studying aerobics helped her body to become light, flexible, and a bit faster. She swiftly dodged the sand that was sent to strike her. She did several back flips to avoid the sand. Her smirk did not waver as she stared at Gaara from her new position. "You like that…? I call it my Chakra Dual Swords. I designed it especially for you. My first slice cuts through your sand so I can move on to my second slice, which is aimed for your body. Your sand armor won't protect you from my chakra-based attacks. Your sand is useless when it comes to chakra because it _requires_ chakra to move! And besides that fact…" The Yamanaka formed a rectangular seal. "**Ninja Art: Mind Destruction Jutsu**!"

Gaara froze, feeling his control leaving. His sand armor cracked, and then returned to its normal sand form. "H-How…? Wh-What is this?!" Ino only grinned as she maintained the seal.

"This jutsu is different from the one you saw, Gaara. Because it's a chakra-based attack your sand could not block it. This jutsu allows me to plant a command in your brain. Your body will have no choice but to follow it. Daddy taught it to me last month. Now… Bring your ass over here."

Gaara's body began to move on its own. No matter how much he tried to struggle against his actions, his body did not falter. Slowly, the red head crawled towards the blond kunoichi. "How… stupid you are… As soon as you… are in… range… my sand will… destroy you." Yes, the sand had not ceased moving along with Gaara's body. Ino only laughed loudly as the Sand ninja continued moving towards her. He did not try to hide his confusion.

"You think that sand will do something? How long have you been living with this sand? You don't even know how it works!" Ino calmed herself down. She bit her lip to stifle more laughter that threatened to come because of the glare being thrown at her. "According to my research, the sand that you are not in control of only reacts to _hostile_ movements. Since I'm just going to stand here-" Gaara was only a few feet away by now. "-I think I'm pretty much safe."

The Sand ninja stopped at Ino's feet. Sweat slid down his skin and dripped off his chin. Never before had he felt so… unprotected. The girl had been right. The sand around him was still… _around him_—not attacking her at all. He stared up at his opponent. He wasn't afraid, though. How could he be? He couldn't attack her, but she couldn't attack him either, least be attacked by his sand. "And how… did you… figure out… about my sand?"

"It's amazing what _your_ sensei said about you once he had a few drinks with my dad. He didn't flat out tell him what I figured it out though—what I figured out took brains. Brains, beauty, and brawn—those are the three B's a kunoichi must have." Without breaking the seal, she dropped to her knees so that she was now at Gaara's eye level. "And since I know your weakness, this will be an easy win for me. Prepare to say 'I quit,' Gaara!"

"My… weakness…?" He was more confused than ever. Considering the position he was in, he was sure that she had already utilized his weakness. Why else would be vulnerable like this?

"Yeah… Your weakness—a terrible weakness to have…" She smiled, but… it was oddly sad. The female Yamanaka eased in towards Gaara. Still the sand did not react to her. Her lips brushed against his cheek, causing Gaara's eyes to grow. Again and again, her lips brushed against his cheek. With each brush, the Sand ninja's face turned another shade. He tried to get away from this… foreign feeling but the seal was still in place. He instead opted to… scream bloody murder.

Everyone watching was pretty much in a stunned silence.

Ino winced at Gaara's vocal range, but she focused and did not break away from the small kisses she was giving. Her blue eyes sudden snapped open as Gaara got louder. _"Something is…!"_ She pushed herself away from the Sand ninja, feeling a bit of fear. The seal she had been maintaining broke. Gaara ceased his screaming and panted. "What…?" Ino also panted. _"Was that… what I think it was?"_

"Y-You…! What was that?!"

"Your weakness, obviously!" Ino was a bit pissed that the match wasn't over. To add insult to injury, he was covering himself with sand armor again. This wasn't supposed to happen.

"No… That… was not a… weakness!"

"Dude… you're hyperventilating right now. I know it's _your_ weakness! When Sakura hugged you that one time, your body completely shut down. And that look in your eyes… I saw fear in them. You were scared of a feeling you're not accustomed to. And what do people do when they don't understand something? They automatically fear it, run from it, and despise it, which is why you're backing away from me, Gaara. You're afraid of what I'll do to you now, aren't you."

The Sand shinobi immediately stopped his movements. He glared at the blond kunoichi. He hadn't even known that he was reacting that way. "Damn you… I'll kill you!" Gaara formed his own seal, causing Ino to narrow her eyes. The sand around him began to surround her opponent in a dome of sand. When Gaara was no longer visible is when she released a sigh of annoyance. She pulled her hair in frustration.

"You baby…!" She yelled, taking out another kunai. "Come back out and fight like a man!"

--

"Sasuke…" Mayu wore a flat expression on her face. She twitched a bit every so often. The Uchiha as well as the Uzumaki also watched the match. Shikamaru wore the same expression on his face.

"Hm…?" Sasuke finally responded.

"Did she just… kiss Gaara-kun and call it a weakness?"

"Yes."

"Oh…" She twitched again. "WHAT THE HELL IS SHE THINKING?!"

--

Ino panted heavily as she watched the dome of sand from a safe distance. More blood ran down her arms. The black fabric had been cut through, showing off her skin underneath. She had attacked the dome numerous times, yet only succeeded injuring herself. _"Jeez…! I didn't think he would be that scared. To think my plan would work great, only to backfire before he could say it." _Ino closed her eyes, trying to calm herself. She scanned the dome over and over again in her mind, trying to find a weak spot. Her chakra swords didn't help this time around because before she could attack, spikes of sand tried to stab her and they were moving quickly, too. She couldn't dodge and slash at multiple spikes while trying to attack as well. That just wasn't happening.

The Yamanaka kunoichi slowly opened her eyes, coming up with an idea. She studied the dome again, grinning when her idea proved to be true. "You think you can get away from me that easily, Gaara?" She dropped down to one knee. She ran through some hand signs. _"I'm going to make you say 'I quit,' Gaara. You can count on it!" _Smirking, she placed her hand on the ground. Soon, the Leaf ninja's form turned into mud. The mud quickly seemed to be absorbed by the dry ground.

Inside the dome of sand, Gaara was giggling to himself. "Yes… I am a good boy… I'm always a good boy for you, mother." His hands had remained in a seal. His eyes were closed in concentration. "Yes. Let's do it. I'll watch you now, mother."

"Mother…? You really have lost it, eh, Gaara?" A coy voice whispered in his ear. The shinobi's eyes snapped open. How did—she was right behind him! Ino wrapped her legs around Gaara's sitting form. "Come on… did you really think I'd let you get away?"

"How did you get in here?!" Gaara all but hollered.

"**Earth Style: Mud Transportation Jutsu**. It's another technique I made up myself. I really didn't want to reveal my earth jutsu in this match, but since you closed yourself in, I had no choice." She pressed her cheek against his back, causing him to freeze. "I'll make you say 'I quit'. There's no escaping me." Ino made another seal. Although she couldn't see him, she knew where he was since he was so close. "**Ninja Art: Mind Transfer Jutsu**!"

Both genin dropped their heads. The jutsu had already seemed to work. Ino's arms fell on Gaara's shoulders as he slumped over. His head twitched. A smirk slowly spread across his face. He pulled his hands apart, ending whatever jutsu had put up the dome. Cracking noises could be heard for a moment before the entire dome dissolved into normal sand. It fell and slid off the bodies of the two genin.

Gaara slowly raised his hand. He seemed to ignore the girl on his back. He lifted his head. "I, Gaara of the Desert, would like to-" He suddenly stopped, eyes wide. He clutched his head as if something were hurting inside his brain.

"**Who are you? Why have you come?**"

Gaara's mouth dropped open at the unfamiliar voice.

"**I do not like visitors. Get out of here, girl, or I'll devour you!**"

Gaara's teeth clenched together. Ino was slightly angry by this voice.

"Are you this 'mother' he keeps talking to? You're not even a woman! You sound like an old drunk!"

"**Get the hell outta my host, brat!**"

Ino, inside Gaara's body, clutched her head in pain. She glared up at the thing, which looked similar to a raccoon dog. She could sense evil, hatred, and bloodlust coming from those beady little eyes. "Go to hell! Why don't _you_ get out?!"

"**What'd you say?!**"

"You heard me! I know all about you, _Shukaku_! Gaara was force to bear the burden of having you sealed within him! You're not even supposed to be here, so get out!"

"… **Why do you care?**"

An image of Sakura—a younger version—appeared in her head. She narrowed her eyes. The image had been crying because of her large forehead again. "That's none of your business! Just get out!"

"**You stupid girl! You think you can just order a Bijuu out of a Jinchuuriki?**"

"What…?"

"**But you've got spunk and I like that. Tell you what… I won't eat you. I'll just kill you if you get out now.**"

"You can shove it!"

"**Hahahaha! Get out, I said! GET OUT!**" The demon blew out a massive gust of wind as he yelled. Ino crossed her arms in front of her. She could already feel her control slipping.

Outside of Gaara's mind, Ino winced, and then formed a sign. "Release…!" Gaara instantly felt himself in control of his own body again. He, however, could do little at the moment. He panted heavily on all fours. He barely acknowledged that his opponent was on his back. She, too, was panting heavily. "What did you do…? I… I… can't… hear mother…"

"Th-That thing inside you… is not 'mother'… you idiot."

Suddenly angry, Gaara flung Ino away from himself, using his sand. "You don't know anything!" he yelled. The blond kunoichi shakily stood on wobbly legs.

"I know… that you're tired. And I know that you're not the problem. It's that thing inside you that's causing all this pain!"

"Be quiet…! You know nothing!" Gaara grabbed his head again, feeling his brain throb. "I am a monster who loves only himself. I was put on this Earth to kill and prove my existence. That is my purpose. I kill to li-"

"YOU SHUT YOUR MOUTH!" Ino snapped, interrupting the red head's words. Surprised, his eyes focused in on her. She was bleeding heavily from her arm. She looked quite fragile at the moment, yet the look on her face was fierce. "How dare you say whatever everyone else says?! You are _human_ and you need to be loved… just like everybody else does! You don't ever forget that, Gaara!"

His sea green eyes expanded even more at her angry shouts. What was with this girl…? Were those… unshed tears? Was she about to cry…? _"For me…?"_ Gaara watched his opponent fall over, probably from the blood loss and the chakra depletion. He bowed his head, the throbbing in his brain had ceased. Making up his mind, he slowly walked over to his fallen opponent. He picked her up, and then disappeared with her in a swirl of sand.

--

"Sasuke…"

"Hm…?"

"Did… Did Gaara-kun just take Ino away…?

"Yeah… Yeah, I think he did…"

"Oh…"

"What the hell…?" Naruto murmured.

_**BOOM**_

The sound of explosive alerted the Leaf genin to the Hokage box. Surprised, they saw smoke rise from that location. "What's going on?!" Shikamaru asked. No one supplied him with an answer.

The invasion of the Leaf village was set to begin.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Finished February 16, 2009

Wow, what a rush, right? Lol… Okay, down to business!

Actually, I've got nothing to say about this chapter. It was pretty okay. I mean, I liked doing it. Wish I could do more with it, but… I'm not that great. But I will say thanks for all the reviews, which helped me to write faster to appease you. It's amazing, really. I really wasn't expecting over a hundred reviews for this story. Didn't think it'd be so good to you.

Next time: _Changing History_

I'm looking forward to your awesome reviews!


	14. Changing History

Okay, I'm going to address some of the reviews that I've received that were anonymous.

**SakuraBlossom**: Okay, I just want to say that I appreciate your review and I hope you continue to review in the future. That being said, I would like to make this simple fact clear to you. Her name is _Mayu_, not Miya, okay? I don't where you got this name from, but it's definitely Mayu. As a fan of the _My Life_ as… series, I took offense to this and got pissed. I just found it very offensive to Mayu's character. Please, please, please… don't mistake the name again. That simple name mix-up halted my writing process, so please don't do it again. Now, don't get me wrong, I still liked your enthusiasm for the story. It was quite refreshing, actually, so don't stop reviewing just cuz you think I hate you, which I don't.

**Betta Den U**: Hohoho! I'm already planning their reunion. It's going to be _special_, trust me! You'll definitely love it.

**dude looks like a lady**: Lol! Nice name! And yeah, I had to think of _something_! I'm pretty sure people was like "oh, she's gonna die!" but that can't really happen, so… no. I'm really glad that you think I make "awesome fights." Ya know it helps to listen to music when writing out those fights. Perhaps, I should tell that to TFKfan-118? Well, here's the chapter that gave you a bad feeling. Hope you enjoy it…even though it gave you this bad feeling.

Warning: **Uchiha Sasuke** has _no_ lines in this chapter!

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Neji's eyes suddenly grew wide. His body tensed as an unfamiliar feeling washed over his body. Quickly, he activated his Byakugan and scanned the area. All around him, citizens were falling asleep. Even his female teammate, Tenten, had seemed to succumb to the massive genjutsu. Her eyes were closed, her mouth was agape, and her head was down. These were sure signs that the girl had fallen asleep. He, himself, was beginning to feel the effects of the jutsu. Gritting his teeth, Neji forced his hands together in a ram sign. He noticed that the ninja in the audience were doing the same. He stood up. "Kai…!" Instantly, the feeling of fatigue went away and was replaced with apprehensiveness. He turned to his squad leader. "Gai-sensei…!"

The man was in the process of setting Lee down on a seat. The injured shinobi had long since fallen asleep. "I'm well aware, Neji." The Hyuga prodigy turned his pale eyes back to the field, only to see that both fighters had disappeared. Before he could make this observation known to his sensei, however, a loud blast interrupted him. The remainder of the audience who hadn't fallen asleep turned their heads towards where their leader was. Smoke was rising from that area. "Hokage-sama…!" Alarmed, Gai moved forward, but he was stopped by four ANBU operatives.

"There's no need for that. You have more important things to do!" One of the mask men told him.

Neji's body flinched. "Gai-sensei…! Sound ninja are here!" The man frantically looked around. He didn't have to wait long. Ninja shot out of their disguises and stood before them. All of them were wearing Sound headbands. Neji narrowed his eyes at the enemy ninja. "So… it has come to this, has it?" Gai stared at his subordinate out of the corner of his eye. It appears so, he thought.

"Neji… The first chance you get, I want you to head towards the proctor down there." Neji almost began to protest at the man's words, but decided against it.

"Understood."

"You think it will be that easy?" One of the Sound ninja smirked.

--

Kin bit her bottom lip, struggling to find an answer for Hinata. The Hyuga heir had asked her what was going on after she had dispelled the genjutsu before it took effect on her. Kiba, unfortunately, had fallen asleep. Kin assumed he didn't know how or he wasn't fast enough to cancel the jutsu. She needed a quick explanation that would calm Hinata down, yet at the same time, she needed an explanation that would send the girl into 'kunoichi mode.' "I'll tell you after we wake Kiba up. He needs to hear this, too." Dark eyes turned away from lavender ones and landed on the sleeping Inuzuka. Also asleep was his partner, Akamaru.

A dark chuckle made the two girls turn. Hinata gasped, seeing five Sound ninja glaring at her and Kin. They all seemed to be grinning under their masks. "Look what we have here?" One of them spoke, causing the others to chortle. Kin glared at the five, discreetly placing a hand in her back weapon's pouch. Her fingers touched and grabbed a hold on multiple senbon. "Two cute innocent girls—and one of them is a Hyuga. How about we… _play_ with them for a bit?" Both girls unconsciously took a step back. Hinata moved her arms closer to her chest as if it would protect her.

"Whoa…! Whoa…! Whoa…! That is _not_ cool, man!" One of the Sound ninja turned to his comrade. "That was not cool even as a joke!"

"Yeah," another agreed. "Anyone who would make a joke about nonconsensual sex is a waste of human life!"

"Jokes about rape are never funny!" A third one chimed in.

"And they're about like more than half our age! You sicken me, Taka! _Sicken_!" The fifth one also put forth his two cents.

As the five began bickering back and forth with each other, Kin gently nudged Hinata's shoulder. They were in danger now. It was not the time to beat around the bush or wait until Kiba woke up. "Hinata… This is war." Hinata's lavender orbs grew wide. "Sound ninja and Sand ninja are all our enemies. They must—we have to kill them." The Hyuga heir bowed her head. Her eyes were hidden behind her bangs.

"I… understand…" she whispered. The kunoichi slipped both hands behind her back, into her weapon's pouch. She pulled out two familiar metallic weapons. Kin smirked, remembering the weapons from her preliminary match.

"Would you guys stop reprimanding me, already…?! We're supposed to kill them either way!"

"I'm just saying-" The man suddenly screamed out. Two senbon had been impaled into both his eyes. He fell back as blood leaked from his injuries. Several more senbon embedded into his body as he fell to the ground. He died from the senbon that went through his throat. His comrades looked on in surprise. Then, with angry eyes, they turned their attention back to the two girls. Kin, who had been the one to launch the senbon, smirked.

"Orochimaru sure does have some weak underlings, ne?" She stuck her middle finger. "Just _try_ to kill us, assholes!"

"You little snot!" The rest of the Sound ninja rushed towards the two kunoichi. It was at that moment that Hinata released her weapons from her hands. They were flung at the four, who had moved to the side in order not to be hit. They landed on the back rest of the seat. They were right in front of the two. "Nice try, but you missed."

"You really think so…?" Hinata's deadly weapons returned to her hands. Beady eyes, belonging to the Sound ninja, all expanded. Two of four choked out blood as their upper bodies slid away from their lower bodies. The other two had been decapitated before their very eyes. "My chakra is so condensed and sharp that it _will_ cut skin. Were you surprised? I'm sorry… that you had to d-"

Kin slammed a hand down on the Hyuga's shoulder. "Now is not the time to be worrying about your first kill, Hinata! This is war and you will have to kill!" Hinata stared, wide-eye at her companion. Slowly, she nodded her head. "Alright… I'm about to wake Kiba up. We three will go around the stadium, taking out any enemy ninja that we find. Got it?"

"Hai…!"

Quickly, Kin did a few hand signs. Concentrated, she gathered up enough chakra before touching Kiba's shoulder and Akamaru's back. The two woke up with a start. "What—Kin?! What's going-"

"No time to talk. We're in a war here. I'm only going to say this once. Sound and Sand ninja equals bad. Leaf ninja equals good." Kiba deadpanned at her use of words. "Kill bad; protect good-"

"I'M NOT AN IDIOT!" Ignoring his shout, Kin stood.

"After we're done, we must go down to that man—the proctor! You ready for this?"

"Hai!"

"Let's go!"

--

Hatake Kakashi sliced through yet another Sound ninja and deflected several oncoming kunai. How annoying, he thought. He dodged another kunai. _"And there's so many… There's no doubt about it… This is definitely an invasion of the Leaf."_ Behind him, his kunoichi comrade grumbled, angrily. Kakashi could tell that her temper was flaring. He could tell right away that she wanted nothing more than to burn all the enemies to a screaming crisp. But she had to hold back, otherwise, civilians would also be hurt.

"This is pissing me off!" Mitarashi Anko pressed her back against Kakashi's. She held up a kunai in front of her. Sound and Leaf ninja alike were all fighting around her. "This is Orochimaru's doing, isn't it?"

"Yes, there's no doubt about it." The copy-nin narrowed his eyes as he watched his comrades fight and defend against the enemy. "Looks like he brought a lot of people, too… Even the Sand's involved." His visible eye moved across the arena until they landed on the roof of where the Kages were. His mouth dropped open in shock. "Anko-san, look…!"

The female ninja turned her head slightly to see what Kakashi wanted her to look at. The two Kages were staring each other down as if they were about to battle. But something was a bit off about the Kazekage. Anko was sure that he had short brown hair. This imposter had long dark hair… and—was that pasty pale skin she saw? Her brown eyes expanded when she realized that what she was seeing was her ex-sensei on top of the roof with her leader. "_Orochimaru_…!" She all but growled. "That bastard…! He disguised himself as the Kazekage to get close to him!"

Anko moved forward, determined to go to protect her leader. Feeling danger, Kakashi's eye widened. "Anko, watch out…!" He tried to warn and stop her, but the kunoichi was already too far away to be helped. She didn't, however, miss the Sound ninja that had appeared in front of her. He prepared to kill her with a kunai. "ANKO…!" Time seemed to slow down at that moment. The kunoichi's eyes grew as the weapon neared her throat. The enemy grinned, just knowing that he would be the one to take out his leader's former student. She had become a traitor. He was surprised she hadn't been dealt with sooner. The kunoichi moved to block the attack even though she knew she wasn't going to be fast enough.

"**Dynamic Entry**...!" A shout, followed by a kick to the face sent the startled Sound ninja into a wall. The force of the kick caused the man's body to make a dent in the wall. A very familiar shinobi dropped down in front of Anko. He turned around and gave his blinding trademark grin. "Anko-san… I'm very surprised. You're usually not sluggish like this."

"Gai…!" Anko, although pissed at the slight insult he gave her, was still grateful that he had managed to save her. But he was right as well. She should have been more alert as she tried to get to the Hokage. "I got distracted, that's all. The Hokage is-"

"Gai, Anko…" Kakashi's voice interrupted the kunoichi and caused the two ninja to turn towards their comrade. He was busy staring at the person in front of him. Standing there, in his ancient, yet legendary battle gear was their commander and leader. "Hokage-sama," the copy ninja greeted with a respectful nod.

"_But…"_ Anko's eyes shifted over to the roof where she had last seen her leader. The old man was still there, facing off against Orochimaru. _"A clone…?"_

"I have dispatched multiple clones in the audience before the matches started. They were here to inform you of what is happening with the village." The voice of the clone caused Anko to turn her eyes back. "The Sand and Sound villages have joined together to attack our village. Because of a newly acquired informant, I was able to know about the attack ahead of time. My real body is currently giving orders to our first line of defense. The Inuzuka clan is leading the counter-attack. There are many Sand ninja, trying to get into the village. I fear that Sound ninja has already infiltrated the village. Your task now is to kill any enemy ninja here at the stadium, then head into the village to fight off the rest. Keep in mind that this is war… Do not take any prisoners until instructed to do so." The three jounin, as well as the Leaf ninja who had heard their leader's words, nodded in understanding. "More of my clones have been informing other ninja of this, so backup is on the way." The clone of their leader disappeared in puff of smoke. A sadistic grin slowly spread across Anko's face. She started laughing to herself, but then her laughter grew louder. Gai and Kakashi gave her wary looks as sweat drops slid down the back of their heads.

"You hear that, you bastards?! This means I don't have to take it easy on you!" The kunoichi performed several hand signs. Multiple Sound ninja, hearing her words, became angry. She had been slicing through their comrades like a hot knife through butter. She had no right say she had been taking it easy on them! Pissed, those ninja jumped up to attack the kunoichi. She only looked up with a smirk. She had finished running through hand signs. Using both hands, the kunoichi made punching motions. "**Double Striking Snake Jutsu**!" Many snakes shot out of her sleeves. The large quantity of brown snakes seemed to consume the ten enemy ninja. The legless reptiles had wrapped their bodies around the enemy, according to their master's will. The sharp fangs had sunk deep into the skin of the enemy, instantly poisoning them. But Anko wasn't done with them yet.

Grinning manically—a trait she had picked up from her former sensei—the kunoichi moved her arms around and around, causing her snakes and the Sound ninja to move as if they were apart of a cyclone. She then slammed them down. Kakashi had to move in order not to be hit by the snakes. Several painful sounding cracks were heard when she slammed the snakes down. Anko had succeeded in—literally—cracking heads and breaking necks. All of the ninja that had been caught were all dead. The summoned snakes returned to their master's sleeves. "That was fun," the kunoichi commented. Anko didn't seem to notice that everyone took a step away from her. "But…"

"What is it, Anko-san?" Gai asked. She turned to her comrades with a confused look on her face. "Is something wrong?"

"Didn't you hear the Hokage? He said that his real body is somewhere else. So who is-?"

"Who is the person with Orochimaru?" Kakashi finished, looking towards that area. Gai looked as well, perplexed. "I suppose that's why ANBU did not hurry to protect him. Hokage-sama must have switched places with another. But who would be willing to?" Anko shrugged, not caring anymore.

"What's important now is to follow his orders, so let's start."

"Hai… We are no longer on the defensive." Kakashi nodded his head.

"Let our flames burn wild!"

Gai totally ignored the looks he received from his comrades.

--

Sakura clung to her mother as they slowly moved away from the sounds of clashing kunai. Getting out of the stadium and avoiding any unnecessary fighting was their plan. Michiyo had fallen asleep, along with everyone else. Sakura, however, didn't. Thanks to her training with Mariko-sensei, she was able to cancel the jutsu before it took full effect on her mind. She had quickly awakened her mother, who had not been a ninja and had no experience with them either. Thinking back, Sakura realized that it was a bad idea. But it was too late to say something right now.

It had all happened so fast.

One moment, she was rolling her eyes because her mother was cheering and screaming for Ino, and then the feathers came. Afterwards, Sound ninja appeared and began to attack. Luckily, there had been many Leaf ninja around her as well. She did not have to fight, she had realized in that moment. After quickly waking her mother, the two females had headed towards the exit.

Sakura pressed her back to the wall. _"I have no idea what's happening, but I know it's not supposed to."_ Sweat slide down her chin as she peered around the corner. There seemed to be no one near the entrance. That was good. Her top priority was to get her mother safe from harm. The genin sighed in relief as she pressed her back against the wall again. She felt her mother's eyes on her. "I have to make sure you're safe, Michiyo-san." Blue eyes open to see the woman nodding her head.

"Yes, but what is going on?"

"… I don't know. My guess is that there's a conflict."

"I see…"

Sakura noted that her mother's emerald eyes were focused on the floor. She grabbed the woman's hand. "Let's go," she urged, before pulling her along. The two females ran towards the entrance. The closer they got, the brighter it had become. Finally, they were outside of the stadium. Sakura stopped moving to scan the surrounding area. Her mother panted heavily behind her. The kunoichi mentally sighed. It was now a shame that she used to be just like that—barely breathing after a small dash. She scanned the area again. Sensing nothing, she began to walk forward. Sakura heard Michiyo's footsteps following. "We should find shelter somewhere near. The village is probably the same as the stadium."

"Get down…!" Sakura suddenly felt her face against the ground. Michiyo, while yelling, had pushed her down with herself on top. Confused, Sakura looked to the side. Three kunai were embedded into the ground. Her blue eyes expanded at the sight of the deadly weapons, which probably would be lodged into her head. If Michiyo hadn't been there, she surely would have died. "We've been spotted." Suddenly, the woman was grabbed by the hair and pulled away. Sakura quickly got on her feet.

Surveying the scene, she realized that there were three of them—all of them were Sound ninja. Gritting her teeth, she moved her hand behind her, only to realize that she didn't have any weapons with her. "Leave her alone! She's not even a ninja!" The three men only chuckled at her logic.

"You stupid girl… Orochimaru-sama ordered us to wipe out the entire village." Sakura's blue eyes grew wide. Orochimaru… If she remembered correctly, he was one of the Legendary Sanin. But he had defected from the village years ago. "The lucky ones were the ones who fell asleep thanks to Kabuto's genjutsu. They get to die last. But since you two managed to get out, we'll have to kill you now." The man tugged Michiyo's hair, causing the woman to cry out.

Tears began welling in Sakura's eyes at the sight of her mother in pain. "No…" she whimpered. "Let her go!" She felt so helpless. She couldn't do anything to stop these men from killing her mom—absolutely nothing. She clenched her eyes shut at the thought. All the training she had gone through with Mariko-sensei and it was all for nothing. A grunt reached her ears, but it didn't sound feminine at all. She opened her eyes to see that her mother had rammed her elbow into the man's jaw, sending him staggering back. "Mom…?" she whispered in surprise.

The other two Sound ninja move in to grab the woman. Michiyo noticed this and jumped up. She twisted her body in midair and kicked the two ninja, causing them to fall to the ground. The woman landed with a confident smile. "I am the mother of a ninja! My husband was a ninja before he died. Do not think I'm as helpless as other citizens!" The woman's green eyes turn to Sakura, who was blinking in astonishment. "Let's go, Mayu!" She grabbed the kunoichi's wrist and took off down the path.

Sakura was in a state of shock. She barely registered the fact that her mother was practically dragging her. Never before had she shown those abilities. Where had she learned something like that? The kunoichi finally snapped out of it when her mother made a sharp turn behind a wide tree. She held Sakura close to her chest, placing a hand over the girl's mouth. Breathing heavy, the woman peered behind the tree. Sakura blinked again before forcing herself away from her mother. "Where did you learn a thing like that?!" Michiyo turned around with a glare. She moved toward the ninja with a frown.

"Now is _not_ the time to be asking me that, kid! And quite shouting! They're still close-" The woman never finished her sentence. One of the Sound ninja had appeared behind her, grabbed her head and pulled back, and then cut open her throat. Blood sprayed every where in front of the dying woman. Sakura stood there, both shocked and numb. She could feel her mother's blood sliding down her face and arms. A choked sob escaped pass her lips. The man released her mother, causing the woman to fall down to the ground. Her blood pooled around her dead body. Tears freely flowed down the girl's cheeks. She did not even care about the man's eyes on her. Her mother was dead.

Haruno Michiyo was dead…

_**One**_

"Stupid bitch had it coming." The Sound ninja stepped over the body. His next target was going to be easy. Not only was she just standing there, she made no move to escape either. "Talk about an easy kill." He lifted the same bloody kunai, and then launched it at the helpless, crying girl. Before the kunai could be impaled in her brain, the weapon was deflected by another kunai. The two weapons fell to the ground. "What?!" The man turned, only to have his head cut off by a sword. Instantly dead, the body fell to the ground with a dull thud—as did the head.

The ANBU operative that had killed the Sound ninja turned to stare at the girl. Her eyes were still wide with tears streaming out of them. He looked towards the dead body of the woman. The man assumed that the woman was someone close to the girl. His teammates had already taken out the other three Sound ninja that were chasing the two. He had arrived too late and could only save one of them. He turned back to the girl, who by now had dropped to her knees with her head down. Still, she did not make a sound. The man silently sighed before removing his weapons pouch. He tossed it over to the girl, yet she didn't move. The masked man dashed away, hoping the girl would snap out of it soon. She was a ninja—she would have to if she wanted to live.

Meanwhile, Sakura finally lifted her head. She looked towards her mother's body. No longer was her eyes filled with shock and sadness. They screamed rage, hatred, and anguish. Her hands gripped the grass underneath her. Her teeth grind together as she continued to stare at the body of dead mother. This was all that imposter's fault! If it hadn't been for her, Michiyo would have never been at the stadium. She would have never gotten _killed_. "I will never forgive you, Ishikari Mayu!" Screaming out loud, she vowed to punish those responsible for her mother's death.

It was at that moment, Haruno Sakura became an avenger.

--

Mayu gripped the bar in front of her as her green eyes scanned the audience. They had all been put to sleep, except for a handful of ninja. The ninja were fighting off enemy Sound ninja. She bit her bottom lip. _"How could I have forgotten about all of this?"_ A hand suddenly appeared on her shoulder. Green eyes turned to her blond teammate.

"Sakura-chan, I know that you're surprised, but you need to snap out of it. We're going to have to fight them, so don't be scared."

"I'm not scared or surprised, Naruto." Mayu clenched her teeth and curled her hand into a fist. "I'm mad as hell!" The kunoichi prepared to jump over the railing. She was going to help out in any way that she could. Sasuke's hand, however, stopped her from doing so. "Sasuke, what the hell?!"

His onyx eyes were not looking at her, but rather at something or someone else. Mayu blinked, before her eyes trailed over to what her teammates were looking at. "Hokage-sama…" Shikamaru was the first to greet the village's leader. Mayu moved from her perched position in shock. She did nothing to stop her mouth from dropping. She knew that this definitely didn't happen…

"Old man…!?" Naruto addressed his leader. "_What_ are you wearing?"

Sarutobi coughed lightly, ignoring the blond shinobi's words. "I'm here to tell you genin that there is war raging between Sound, Sand, and Leaf." Several pairs of eyes widen. "The chuunin selection exam is officially over. Although you are all still genin, I'm going to need you, as ninja of the Leaf, to be useful to the Leaf. You will fight. You will kill—all to ensure the safety of the village." The Hokage pulled a bottle out. He opened the cap, and then shook out several bead-like objects. "That being said, I have a mission for you."

He held the pills out to the genin. Already knowing what they were, the genin of Team 7 didn't take one because Mayu had already given both Sasuke and Naruto one from her stash. Shikamaru and Shino, however, took one. The former took one just in case, and the latter took one because he had used up most of his chakra during his match with Chouji. The Hokage stared at Team 7. He could tell that they didn't need it, so he placed the rest back in the bottle. "Your comrade, Yamanaka Ino, was taken. Your mission is to retrieve her. The one that took her—Gaara—is the Sand's secret weapon. Stop him from doing anything that might seem dangerous. Genma, the proctor, is already informing the genin that is down there with him." The five took a glance behind them. Sure enough, Genma was speaking to four Leaf ninja. "Go down there and gather a team necessary to get Yamanaka-san back."

"I understand…" Mayu replied, narrowing her eyes. Those around her nodded their heads in confirmation.

"Alright then… Dismissed!"

"Hai…!" Four genin jumped from the waiting area down to the arena below. Sarutobi blinked, and then looked towards the last genin, Nara Shikamaru. The lazy genin sighed heavily.

"What a drag…" he commented before following his comrades. The clone almost slipped out a chuckle.

"Like father, like son."

Down below in the pit, Mayu scanned over the genin who were already down here. Besides her team, Shikamaru, and Shino, there was Neji, Hinata, Kiba, and… Green eyes focused on the girl who wasn't familiar. Her eyes were dark, and so was her hair. The girl didn't seem like a ninja, but those senbon in her hands proved otherwise. Mayu continued to stare, noticing that the girl would not look her in the eye. It was then she decided to focus in on what Genma was saying. "… So, do any of you have a plan to get her back?" No one responded to his question. "Come on. One of you-"

"I've got it." Mayu announced, causing the genin to look to her.

"You've got a plan?" Neji looked skeptic.

"Don't underestimate me." Mayu looked over nine genin again as she responded. "This group is way too big to be going to find Ino. So it's a good idea to split us up. The first group will head out. The next group will tail after the first group, but at a safe distance so that if we do encounter an enemy, the second group can come in with a sneak attack. There is will be another group following that one. They will act as the last line of defense." The kunoichi held up four fingers. "The first group will consist of me and three others, making four. The next group will be three. And the last group will have two." Genma blinked in surprise.

"_A reverse pyramid formation?"_ he thought.

"Yeah, but who's going with who?" Kiba asked.

"Well, since Naruto, Sasuke, and I already make a good team, they'll be coming with me in the first group." Mayu scratched her cheek and stared at the ground. She then looked back up. "Neji, I'm going to need your eyes, so you're with us, too."

"… Then the next group…" Kin began. All eyes fell on her. The missing-nin swallowed spit before continuing. "_Ah_… The next group should be Kiba, Hinata, and I."

"Yeah… I think that's good idea, too, but… who are you?" Mayu asked.

"I-"

"Her name is Tsuchi Kin. She was in the chuunin exam with us." Kiba interrupted. "But she's not apart of the Sound, anymore, so she's not our enemy."

"I can speak for myself!"

Mayu nodded. She was astonished, but content with this new development. Her presence here did bring up many questions, but now wasn't the time for answers. "Yes, Kiba, Hinata, and Kin will be the second group. Hinata will lead them because she as the Byakugan as well, so it should be easy to follow. The last group will be Shino and Shikamaru."

"I have already planted bugs on everyone so that it will be easier for the two of us to know where you are," Shino spoke up. Mayu had to sop herself from shuddering. There was a bug somewhere on her… Must not scream, she chanted to herself. Sasuke almost rolled his eyes, knowing what was going through his teammate's head.

"Go-Good… j-job, Shino." She forced a smile to appear. She could have gone without knowing there was a bug somewhere on her. She turned to Shikamaru. "Hey, you got something of Ino's I can get a scent from?"

"And why would I have something like that?"

"You're her teammate!"

"And…?"

"You're supposed to!"

"Where in the rulebook is that?"

"You lazy-"

"Hey! During Ino's fight—her hair tie thingy broke!" Naruto exclaimed, interrupting a pointless argument. "We can use that, can't we?"

"Yeah, we can. Nice thinking, Naruto. Go get it for me." The blond nodded, and then dashed away to find the missing ponytail holder.

"Wait a minute…! If you're looking for a scent then me and Akamaru are the ones for the job! We can track Ino, no problem!"

"No, your noses need to focus on other things, like oncoming enemies." Mayu bit down her thumb, and then performed hand signs. "**Ninja Art: Summoning Jutsu**!" She slammed her hand against the ground. Smoke surrounded the kunoichi. A small roar was heard, and then the smoke dissipated. Nana, the black leopard had arrived again. Mayu strapped the long bow, as well as the quiver full of arrows, on her back. It was at that time that Naruto came back with the hair tie.

"Here it is!" Naruto handed the item over to his female teammate. Mayu dropped down and put the snapped band in front of Nana's nose. The cub sniffed it lightly, and then turned. The kunoichi smiled, and then stood up. She tossed the band over to Kiba.

"You and Akamaru should have a whiff to, just in case."

"Got 'cha…!" His dog partner barked.

Mayu looked at everyone again. "We must succeed in retrieving Ino! We cannot fail this!"

"Hai…!"

"Sasuke, Naruto, Neji, Nana—let's move…!"

Genma watched the first group go with a smirk on his face. _"Hell, this formation just might work."_ The man rubbed his chin. "_Hard to believe a genin came up with effective teams like that so quickly."_

"Hey…" Shikamaru's voice got the proctor's attention. "I get the feeling that the Hokage-sama isn't where he's supposed to be. So… Just where is he and who is _that_?" The lazy ninja gestured up towards the roof.

"That's a good question, kid."

--

Orochimaru chuckled darkly. He and his former sensei was separated, yet staring each other down as if a battle was about to ensue. Moments before, he had pulled off his Kazekage mask, revealing himself to be one of the Legendary Three, a Sanin. The Hokage, in response to Orochimaru's chuckle, glared. "Who would have thought I'd have a chance to fight you again, Sarutobi-sensei." The snake Sanin grinned. The old man asked what he had done with the real Kazekage—even though he knew full well. "Oh him…? He's somewhere, lying in a ditch. You know how things are when business deals go sour…"

"So you killed him, did you?" Orochimaru only chuckled again. "You have gone too far, Orochimaru… I must do what I should have done all those years ago." The snake user smirked at his words.

"Let's just hope your old crippled body can keep up, Sarutobi-sensei." It was the Hokage's turn to chuckle. The smirk on the old man's face angered Orochimaru somewhat. "I didn't think you'd be too happy with seeing me again."

"You haven't changed a bit since the last time I saw you, and yet… you couldn't see through this simple jutsu." The snake Sanin furrowed his eyebrows together. He had felt chakra emitting from his former sensei, but thought nothing of it at the time. There was really nothing the old man could do against him, so he didn't worry about it. "To think that someone like you couldn't recognize a jutsu like this—even though we're the same age, you must've gotten weaker."

Orochimaru did not look happy. "What?!" he shouted. "Have you gone senile? What do you mean same age?" To answer his question, the Hokage decided to show him. Smoke covered his entire body. Within seconds, the 'Hokage' had turned into Jiraiya, the toad Sanin. "You…! Where's Sarutobi-sensei?! He's the one I want!"

"Sorry… He has a much more… _important_ job to attend to." Jiraiya smirk grew as Orochimaru's frown deepened. After all, he had just used the same words against the snake Sanin. "What is it? Not happy to see an old teammate?"

The snake Sanin bared his teeth in rage. Damn, he should have known something was up with ANBU didn't come rushing in to save their leader. Had his careful thought out plans been discovered? Impossible—how could they have been? "You fool… If you want to die, then be my guest, but you're still light-years away from fighting me. Go and get me the Hokage!"

"No, no… Let's fight, Orochimaru. After all, it's what we've always wanted, isn't it?" Jiraiya took one step forward. The snake Sanin narrowed his eyes. "When we were younger, I thought of you not only as a friend, but also a rival. I know that a one moment in time, you, too, also thought of me as a rival. Let's see who's stronger."

"Fine…"

The two reunited Sanin tensed as they continued each other down. Orochimaru suddenly dashed towards his former teammate. Jiraiya quickly formed hand signs. Ignoring this, Orochimaru extended his neck and moved towards his ex-teammate at a much quicker speed. Jiraiya's hair suddenly grew longer. His white hair became rigid and spiked. He looked similar to a porcupine. "**Ninja Art: Needle Jizo**!" His hair completely covered his body, just as Orochimaru's foot connected. Several spikes actually went through his foot. Orochimaru frowned and tried to bite his opponent at the neck, but the hair moved in to cover up Jiraiya's face as well. Orochimaru only got a mouth full of spikes for his efforts.

The snake Sanin jumped back as his neck returned to normal. He smirked at his former teammate. He didn't have time to play around with him. Jiraiya needed to be taken care of quickly. His target had been—and will be—the old man, his past sensei. _"Looks like I'm going to have to use that a little earlier than expected… And I wanted Sarutobi-sensei to be surprised."_ The snake Sanin almost chuckled. _"But how fun it will be to see the fool's reaction when he sees it—I can hardly contain myself."_ Orochimaru finally laughed out loud.

Hearing his laughter, Jiraiya grew annoyed. His hair returned to its original state. He glared at his fellow Sanin. "What the hell is so funny? Last time I checked, it was my point!" His eyebrow twitched when Orochimaru continued to laugh. "Orochimaru, would you stop fantasizing already?!" The snake Sanin's laughter abruptly ended. Jiraiya received a glare for his words.

"I'll tell you what's funny… The fact that we're the same age, and yet… you look so much older," he responded.

"You're the definition of handsome young man, yourself!"

Ignoring that, Orochimaru continued. "I have something to show you—something that I have been working on for years. Finally, I have perfected my very own jutsu. This jutsu is so great that it will make a lesser man like you quiver with _fear_." The snake Sanin covered his face with his right hand. A maniacal smirk was visible even behind his hand.

"I really don't think you can top the tongue thing because that's the only thing about you that I'm a little afraid of," Jiraiya commented. Orochimaru lost his smirk. He clenched his teeth together, and then peeled off his face. The toad Sanin's eyes expanded to an indescribable size at the sight of the face hidden beneath the skin that had been torn off.

The snake user pushed his hair away from his face to see the reaction he got from his opponent. It was truly thrilling in his opinion. Jiraiya's mouth hung open. Orochimaru smiled, and then giggled. "What is wrong, Jiraiya?" he asked in a woman's voice. The toad sage's body trembled as he continued to stare. Orochimaru's smile had transformed into a wide wicked grin.

"I…" Jiraiya's body continued to shake. "I… I KNEW IT!" The white-haired man suddenly shouted, pointing a finger. Orochimaru, startled, took a step back. He had not been suspecting that reaction. No one outside the Sound village knew of this certain jutsu. There was no way his ex-teammate could have known about it. "This whole time—this whole time…! I knew it! Everyone called me crazy, but I always knew! Orochimaru… You're really… a _woman_!"

"What?! You fool, I'm not-"

Jiraiya shook his head, no longer listening to reason. "I just knew that you were a girl. You were just as flat as Tsunade used to be!" The toad sage smirked. "That old man owes me a lot of money. I knew that someday you would reveal your true form, Orochimaru. You probably had a crush on me, didn't you?" By now, the young woman's face was twitching all over. Pink lips formed into a sneer.

"You idiot…! This is not my originally body!" Jiraiya looked skeptical. "The jutsu I created allows my mind to stay in this world forever. By transferring my mind into another's body, I can accomplish everything! This jutsu—this technique is something that has granted me internal youth. **Immortality Jutsu**! Each time I use this jutsu, I will gain a younger, stronger, and more beautiful body."

The toad Sanin frowned. "I see… You want that Uchiha boy and his female teammate as your hosts. No wonder you were impressed with their fight." Orochimaru giggled again. Jiraiya had been right. He wanted _both_ of them.

"Yes… With the Sasuke-kun, my dream of mastering every single jutsu is that much closer. With the Sharingan in my possession, I can surpass every ninja." The snake Sanin grinned maliciously. "The girl would be a great alternative. Sasuke-kun—if I can't have him, I'll gladly take Sakura-chan's body in his place. As you saw in her match, she can copy advanced bloodlines as if it were a simple task. If I have Sasuke-kun, however, I wish to… _experiment_ on the girl's body and find out how she has such a magnificent ability. Yes, Jiraiya, you are correct. I plan to take them away from this village when they grow up to my liking."

Jiraiya glared hard. "You're a sick and twisted monster! I can see why the Third didn't select you as the Fourth! You're insane, Orochimaru!" The snake user merely scoffed. He pressed the skin back on her face, making it seem like his real face had resurfaced. He smirked again.

"Someone like you can never understand my ambition," he said in his normal voice. "But that's okay, I wouldn't expect you to." He chuckled with malevolence. "Before you die… how about I give you a gift? Before you go, you will see someone who you thought was long dead." Jiraiya narrowed his eyes. "Since we were teammates, it's the least I can do in your final moments." Orochimaru created several hand signs. Finished, he slammed his palms together. "**Summoning Jutsu: Reanimation**!"

In front of the snake Sanin appeared a purple whirlpool like entity. Out of the whirlpool came three coffins. The three objects hid Orochimaru from view. It was then that Jiraiya comprehended the meaning behind his former teammate's words. "No…" he whispered. His body refused to move at the thought of seeing _him_. "No! I can't let you do that!" His selfish side stifled.

"You're too late to do anything!" Orochimaru yelled. The three coffins opened, revealing the three past Hokages of the Leaf village. Seconds later, the eyes of the First Hokage opened, and then Second's, and then finally the Fourth's. Not even caring for the first two at the moment, Jiraiya's eyes remained focused on the last and youngest of the three.

"Minato…" he murmured. Countless memories filled his head—memories that had been repressed until now. "Orochimaru, you _bastard_…!" The snake Sanin only chuckled from behind the safety of the caskets. The three Hokages slowly stepped out of their coffins. The First Hokage stood on the right. The Second stood on the left. And the Fourth stood in between the two. The blond of the three looked up. His discolored blue eyes locked with the guilty eyes of his teacher.

"I guess it's… been a long time. You look much older," Minato spoke without emotion. A pained look crossed Jiraiya's face. Blue eyes narrowed. "Tell me about him… My son—how is he doing? Is he happy without me being there?" The toad Sanin's gaze dropped to the roof. How could he possibly answer him? Could he honestly say that he had _just_ met his son only weeks ago? Fortunately or unfortunately, Orochimaru answered for him.

"The Kyuubi brat…?" He grinned, pushing the coffins away so that he could see all. "Why would a jinchuuriki ever be happy? I'm sure that the villagers despise him with a passion. He's an abandoned child with no one to love, and with no one to love him. What an unfortunate childhood to have, ne, Jiraiya?"

"How could you…" Minato clenched his teeth. "How could you let that happen? You were supposed to protect him and give him the love that I couldn't! You are his _godfather_!" Ashamed, Jiraiya could only keep his eyes turned away from his deceased student. There was nothing he could say—absolutely nothing he could say that would make up for what he had not done. "Sensei, did I make the wrong choice?"

"No, I-"

"Well, this has been a very touching reunion for teacher and student, but-" Orochimaru interrupted. Three Hokages and one Sanin looked towards the snake user. "-It's time to start the killing. I'm getting quite bored with such pointless conversations. I have a village to destroy. And also, I must take those two with me—the boy's teammates will do nicely on my side."

"_Ah_… So that is how we were revived," the First Hokage spoke up.

"It seems that we have no other choice then." The Second Hokage nodded his head.

Minato closed his eyes and slowly turned his body to face Orochimaru. "You want to… destroy the village?" He took a step towards the Sanin, who chuckled.

"Why else would I summon you three? I find it very ironic that the ones responsible for creating this hidden village… will be the very ones to help eradicate it. Paradoxical, don't you agree?" Orochimaru licked his lips with his longer than normal tongue. A Rasengan formed in Minato's hand. The snake Sanin only grinned. "Like teacher, like student—both of you are fools. The jutsu used to summon you forces you to my will. I own your soul, your mind, and your body."

_"Wait a minute,"_ Jiraiya thought, staring closely at the swirling mass in his student's hand. The color—it was off. Instead of the brilliant blue color it normally had, it was green—neon green. _"What happened to it? Could dying change attacks like that?"_ The toad Sanin watched his former student move his Rasengan-filled hand by his right shoulder. The blond glared at Orochimaru, who had by now lost his grin.

"For your ill intentions towards my son and my village, I will make you suffer," Minato calmly.

"You can't…! You belong to me!" Sweat slid down the Sanin's face. This was not supposed to be happening. He was supposed to be as emotionless as the other two Hokages. He was not supposed to show any defiance! Why was he acting any different from the other two revived Hokages? It didn't make any sense.

"You don't know, but I belong to Shinigami-sama. Let me show you something he taught me." The Fourth made a striking motion with his hand. The strangely colored Rasengan discharged from his hand and headed towards Orochimaru. Jiraiya could barely believe it. Never before had the Rasengan been a long-distance attack… But since it was Minato, he didn't doubt the fact that he was the first to use it as a ranged attack. Orochimaru, also surprised, could only watch as the swirling ball came towards him at impeccable speeds. The blond Hokage suddenly made a hand sign—the serpent hand sign. "**Four-Star Poisonous Rasengan**!"

The green ball split into four smaller balls. Each ball went into a different direction. Two of the green spheres went into Orochimaru's hands, and the other took went into his legs. The snake Sanin screamed out in pain. He fell to his knees, withering in agony. The First and Second Hokages started crumbling and turning into ash. Orochimaru's jutsu had ended because of the break of chakra. Two bodies were revealed from the fallen ashes. The bodies had belonged to mere children of the Sound village—Zaku and Dosu.

Minato slowly moved toward the screaming snake user. He spoke in a calm voice as he stared down at Orochimaru. "Killing you would be too merciful. The poison that has been pushed into your body is from Shinigami-sama's world, and it will cause you to suffer immensely. Not only will it disrupt your chakra, making it so that you can't mold it properly, but it will also slowly wear down your body. You will… _eventually_ succumb to an excruciating death." Orochimaru, already feeling the effects of the other worldly toxin, glared weakly up at the ninja hailed as the Yellow Flash. "You have brought this on yourself, Orochimaru. Live on in pain for the rest of your pathetic life."

Kabuto, who had been watching the entire time, finally revealed himself. He jumped in between his master and Minato. Behind an ANBU mask, he stared in awe at the man before him. He would have never thought he would get the chance to see someone named the strongest ninja of his generation. Realizing the situation, the masked Kabuto shook his head, and then picked up the fallen Sanin. He leapt away from the roof, carrying Orochimaru with him. The snake user was wailing about his dream as he was carried away.

Jiraiya finally moved from his spot. He stood a few inches away from the Fourth Hokage. "You should have killed him. He has the ability to switch bodies. He will only go to another body once he figures out he can." He stared sadly at his former student's back, not even caring for Orochimaru's escape. He still felt extremely guilty. Minato had trusted him with the life of his son, and yet he had _failed_ him.

The Fourth Hokage lowered his head. Kabuto and Orochimaru were now out of his sight. "Is that so…? Then you must find a way to kill that man before the poison completely disappears from his chakra system. I'm assuming that the poison will become less concentrated as he switches bodies. He should be stopped before he regains full strength." Finally, the blond turned his eyes to Jiraiya, who backed up at the intense stare he was getting. "Sensei, I want you to do your job. Protect my son, train him, love him—make sure that he is well." The man clenched his fist. "I can not believe he has been alone all these years."

"That's not true! I mean, he as a team now! He talks about his team a lot. He cares about them with a passion, and I believe they feel the same based on the way he describes them. Hatake Kakashi is the squad leader." A small smile appeared on Minato's face.

"That's good," he whispered.

"And… I promise you that I will train him!" The toad Sanin bowed low. "I know that I didn't keep my promise before, and you have no excuse to forgive me for that, but please know that I will try my hardest to do as you ask this time around!"

Minato turned his body. "Do not bow to me, sensei." Jiraiya hesitantly looked up. "I have little time left before I must return." He looked towards his former mentor out of the corner of his eye. "I forgive you, but please… take care of him. I want him to surpass even me." His skin began to flake off in the wind. He gave a wide grin—a grin that his son had inherited. Finally, his body became ash, revealing the dead body of a random Sound ninja.

"Minato… Kid…"

"Take care…!" His fading voice whispered.

Jiraiya blinked back the tears that threatened to spill over. He rubbed his head and breathed deeply. Seeing his former student brought about so many emotions. The toad sage slid his hand down his lower face. "I—more than anything want to fulfill my promise to you." His other hand balled into a fist. "I will train him to be as great—no, greater than you! I'll teach him what I did not have the chance to teach you. Under my guidance, Uzumaki Naruto will become a Hokage!"

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Finished March 12, 2009

Okay, I'm a bit disappointed with this chapter. My intention was to have Jiraiya and Orochimaru battle it out like crazy! I wanted their battle to be sweet and cool and memorable! … But I could not—for some strange reason—write it out. I'm really angry at myself for this. After the point of me telling myself "wow, I can't write this," the chapter is pretty much rushed. I didn't want to make readers wait any longer for something that was going to be lame, so I tried to speed up the process. This was more comedic than what I had intended it to be.

Hopefully, the next chapter won't be like this one.

Next time: _Rescue Me_

I'm looking forward to your amazing reviews!


	15. Rescue Me

Kankuro, at a quick pace, moved towards the perimeter wall of the Leaf village. Once there, he could meet up with his comrades. Apparently, the wall had not been breached as planned. Something had stopped the giant snake from being summoned. The puppet ninja could easily tell because of the few Sand ninja he had seen as he made his way through the village. He tried to say out of sight. He was in no position to engage in a fight right now. His sister, Temari, was unconscious at the moment because of her chakra being exhausted. Right before his younger brother's match had started, Kankuro decided to grab Temari and get the heck out of dodge. He knew that if Gaara became unstable, it would screw up the entire plan. And since his sister was pretty much useless, there was no telling if she would survive this war.

A groan reached his ears, causing the puppet ninja to turn his head slightly. Good, Temari was finally showing signs of life. For some reason, he noticed, she was not treated after her match with that Leaf shinobi brat. Normally, contestants who lost were immediately treated after their match—not matter what village they came from. But not this time. Kankuro narrowed his eyes as he focused on the wall. He was almost there. _"If I didn't know any better, I would think they knew about the invasion..."_ The Sand shinobi bit his bottom lip. But that was impossible, wasn't it? Only a handful of Sand ninja knew how the attack was going down. In fact, only the Sand and Sound ninja that were actually inside the walls of the village knew how it was going down. There's just no way the Leaf could plan a counter-attack so quickly.

"Kankuro…? What are you doing?" His sister's voice alerted him of her sudden consciousness. He didn't respond. They were almost at the foot of the wall—where it was possibly more dangerous. "Kankuro…?!"

"Quiet, Temari…!" he told her. The blond kunoichi instantly closed her mouth. She had rarely heard Kankuro use that serious tone before. "While you were taking your little _nap_, the invasion started." The shinobi stopped. His cover was the trees surrounding the area. If he could just get over the wall without being seen, then he could get his sister away from danger…

The Sand kunoichi scowled at his comment, but then her eyes widen. "Wait, where's Gaara?" Kankuro removed his sister's arm from his shoulder. His eyes darted to and fro, trying to find an opening. They had to get over the wall or the chances of dying might go up. "Kankuro, where's Gaara?" The Sand shinobi had to hush his sister again. It was an action that Temari did not like one bit. She had to stop herself from whacking him upside the head. "But where is he? He's a major part in this! Where is Gaara?!"

"The hell if I know," Kankuro finally answered. Temari furrowed her eyebrows. "As soon as I saw him getting excited about his match, I snuck away and picked you up."

Temari surveyed the area. There were numerous Leaf ninja scattered about. They all seemed to be guarding. "If the invasion has started, where is our backup?"

"My guess is that they can't get in. The wall was supposed to broken so that they could. For some reason, the summon hasn't shown up, which puts a major setback on our plans," Kankuro answered. He put a hand in front of his sister's face. "Lend me an explosive note, would ya?" Temari swatted his hand away, but quickly handed over the note. The puppet ninja tied the note to the end of a kunai, and then threw it in the opposite direction of the wall. Seconds later, the note and weapon exploded. Kankuro smirked when Leaf ninja jumped, and then went over to the noise. "Let's go!"

The two Sand ninja quickly scaled the wall, using chakra. "Why exactly are we trying to escape?" Temari asked, following after her brother. Kankuro didn't look back to answer.

"We're not escaping. We're just retreating for the time being. I'd rather be outside with comrades than inside with enemies." Temari nodded her head in understanding, although he couldn't see. Kankuro stopped when he reached the top of the wall to wait for his sister. It wasn't much cover, so he'd have to be quick about it. Seconds later, Temari landed near him. He guessed that her chakra had yet to come back fully. Kankuro stared off into the distance. Pushing chakra into his eyes, he enhanced his vision somewhat. "They're a few miles away—hundreds of us… and the Sound, too."

"You think that will be enough seeing as how the wall hasn't been broken?" Temari was visibly panting. Kankuro looked at his sister for a moment before returning his eyes to the distant dust cloud that was being caused by many ninja, running towards the village. They would probably reach the village in about fifteen minutes based on the speed that they were going.

"If it all fails, we still have Gaara… I hope." The blond kunoichi didn't respond to her brother's comment. She didn't want to believe that the plans were already falling apart before that had even happened. Many people—probably many more people—would die today. "Let's go!" With that, the two siblings jumped from the top of the wall.

--

"Jiraiya-sama…!" A squad of ANBU appeared behind the older man. "There seems to be little to no Sand ninja actually inside the village. However, there are a number of Sound ninja already inside. Many ninja are fighting them off." The older man did not respond. His eyes remained focused on the outside of the village. The enemy forces were almost at the first line of defense, which was the Inuzuka clan. "Sir… Can we be of some assistance here?"

"Your assistance is not needed here. I'm sure that the village's clans will take care of the enemy before they reach the village." He did not turn to face the ANBU operative. "And please… call me Hokage-sama." The older man released the transformation jutsu. Without the jutsu in effect, the leader of Hidden Leaf village, Hiruzen Sarutobi, stood with his head held high. Surprised gasps escaped the mouths of each ANBU member in the group. "The clans will defeat the invading forces. Other ninja are in the village. That is where I want ANBU to be for backup. My orders remain the same. Do not take any prisoners."

"Got it…!"

"And Yugao…"

"Hai?"

"I give you permission to find your lover's murderer and kill him."

Before a porcelain animal mask, teeth were clenched. Killer intent practically radiated off the purple-haired kunoichi. Just remembering the way he had been left to the crows caused her blood to boil. She curled her fingers into a fist. _"Hayate… I will avenge you!"_ Retribution was coming closer and closer. Those around her trembled unconsciously. A maniacal smirk appeared on her face, although no one could see it—not that anyone wanted to at the moment. "With _pleasure_, sir…" The Hokage nodded his head, signaling that the squad was dismissed.

As the squad disappeared, Sarutobi lightly touched the headset. "They're coming," he informed everyone who was listening. Each and every clan head responded in unison.

"They won't get pass us!"

"That's what I like to here."

"I see them—they're within eyesight!" Tsume stated.

"Yes… I know that I called you the lines of defense, but… you will attack first, understood?"

"Understood…! LET'S TEAR THEIR ASSES APART!"

Everyone listening cringed at the volume of her voice.

--

"Oi…! Slow down a bit!" Sasuke called up to his teammate. The kunoichi didn't even glance at him. "I know that you're worried because Ino's your friend, but you can't let her kidnapping get to your head. It will only jeopardize the mission!"

"Shut up!" Still, she didn't look back. "You have no idea how I feel right now! None of you know anything!" The four ninja were traveling at a quick pace, closely following behind a black leopard cub. The three shinobi were trying to keep up with the headstrong kunoichi, who seemed not to care how fast she was going.

Naruto frowned, and then hurriedly picked up his pace. He was right beside her now. "You're wrong, Sakura-chan. Sasuke and I know how this makes you feel." Mayu glanced at the blond before her green eyes focused on Nana again. "You're incredibly angry—we all are. Our home has been invaded. We're just as upset as you." Mayu shook her head. "No…?"

"The reason that I'm angry is different from your reason." Naruto waited for the girl to continue, but she never did. He supposed she was going to tell them sooner or later, along with _everything_. The blond shinobi gave a semi-nod, and then moved to match his pace with Sasuke and Neji.

"Your teammate—she's very strange," Neji remarked.

"You have no idea." Sasuke and Naruto spoke in unison.

The ninja moved in silence for a few minutes more. Suddenly, Nana let out a growl. Mayu's eyes expanded when the black leopard halted. She also stopped beside her feline partner on top of a building. The three shinobi dropped down next to her. Mayu knelt next to Nana, who turned her body to face her. "How many…?" Mayu questioned. An answer was given. Mayu closed her eyes as she stood. She turned and faced the rest of the group. "There's a group of people heading towards up from that direction." She thumbed towards the direction where they were going. "Nana cannot tell if they are comrades or not, but they don't smell like Ino, meaning they could pose as an unnecessary distraction. Since we don't know if they are friend or foe, then we-"

"I might be able to tell," Neji interrupted. "My eyes are able to recognize chakra signatures. Every chakra network is similar, yet different. I am able to tell the difference."

"So you can tell the difference, huh?" Neji nodded. "How would know if they aren't Leaf ninja?"

"Based on where one lives, their chakra network is similar yet different to those around you." The Hyuga prodigy only got confused looks from both Mayu and Naruto. He mentally sighed. "What I mean is—since we live in the same village, all of our chakra systems are similar yet different. If a person were to come from another village, their chakra network would appear to be extremely unlike ours."

"_Ah_…! I get it!" Naruto exclaimed. Mayu nodded her head.

"Then give me a visual then," she ordered. A slight nod was given before the Hyuga male activated his advanced bloodline.

Neji looked pass Mayu, in the direction that the group was heading in. He stayed silent for a moment, trying to find the approaching group. "You were right," he finally announced. "There are four unfamiliar chakra systems heading our way. And by the looks of it, they're experienced."

"Looks like we're going to have to fight them," Sasuke spoke. "And kill them, too." A silence enveloped the group of five. None of had actually had their first kill yet. But as ninja, it was their duty to do so, especially in this type of situation.

"We have no choice. I need to release this anger, anyway. If they didn't want to die, then they shouldn't have come into our village, hoping to take over, right?" Her comrades slowly nodded their heads. "Anyway, Sasuke is correct. We will have to engage in battle with them. If we try to avoid them, it will most likely take a longer time to reach Ino. And who knows what could happen to her if we're late."

"But we probably would get slowed down by this group of four, too." Naruto crossed his arms and frowned. His remark caused Mayu's eyebrows to knit together.

"You're right-" she said. "-which is why I've got a plan. If my plan fails, then we can always count on the second group to show up. They're our back up, after all."

"So then what's the plan?" Sasuke questioned. The kunoichi smirked. Sasuke could see the malevolence in her eyes. That bloodlust was just unnatural. The others didn't seem to realize her vicious smirk.

"I'm going to need some clones, Naruto."

--

"Damn it…!" An irritated voice rang out. "Where the hell are all the people?!" Blue lips transformed into a sneer. The slightly feminine male clenched his fists. His three other teammates tried to ignore him. "I haven't seen one crying brat, no screaming women, and more importantly-"

"Would you shut the fuck up already?" The female ninja finally snapped. Her brown eyes narrowed her feminine associate. She pushed her red hair from her face. "He told us that we were only supposed to look for _one_ person, anyway! So shut up and stick to the fucking mission, you dumbass!"

"Tayuya…!" The kunoichi was berated by the biggest member of the team. "Ladies shouldn't speak that way."

"You shut up, too, fatass!"

"Cut it out, you three!" A teen with extra arms rolled his eyes at his teammates' actions. Initially, the mission was for the four to put up an impenetrable barrier around their leader and his opponent. The barrier's purpose was meant to not let anyone in or out. Orochimaru needed the four in order for this to work. But at the last minute, the snake Sanin changed his mind and give the four a different mission—a mission involving the capture of a female ninja. The male teen pulled a picture out. It was the image of the girl that they were supposed to find. The extra-armed teen grinned when he noticed the features of the girl. "Hey, she has pink roots! Looks like Tayuya's got a twin just like you, Sakon."

The feminine shinobi known as Sakon chuckled as the kunoichi known as Tayuya fumed. "My hair is not pink, you ass! I would kill myself before my hair ever becomes that color, fucker!"

"Now, now, Tayuya… Kidomaru's on to something." Sakon grinned with mirth. "Having a twin could help you. Having a twin automatically makes you cute so you should be happy since you're not cute at all. Not womanly in the least."

"You fag!"

"Tayuya!"

"Up yours, Jirobo, you fat bastard!" The kunoichi gave her comrade a very rude hand gesture. Kidomaru smirked, half-annoyed, yet half-amused by his teammates' meaningless bickering.

The teen suddenly stopped on top of a building and held his five hands out—one hand still holding the picture—signaling his comrades to stop behind him. "Looks like we've got company." He put his arms down and stood up straight. The other three Sound ninja looked towards the building opposite of the one they were standing on. By the looks of it, four ninja of the Leaf village were talking on top of a building. The four didn't seem to notice their presence yet. Kidomaru's eyes focused in on the only girl with the group of Leaf ninja. She looked exactly like the picture except without the pink roots. "Hey, hey…! Lucky us, right? There's the girl we're supposed to get!"

"Finally, I thought I'd never get to kill any crying brats." Sakon grinned with wickedness. Tayuya scoffed in disgust.

"You're fucking pathetic."

"What? They're all going to die anyway. What's wrong with picking off the weak ones first?" Sakon's voice was innocent, but Tayuya still glared heatedly at him. The teen chuckled again. "Let's go introduce ourselves, eh?"

"Fuck you, you fucking jackass." The red-haired kunoichi turned her head away as the three around her chortled. "What the hell are we waiting for, let's get the girl and move on!"

The Sound Four jumped over to the other building, surround the four Leaf ninja. They turned around in surprise. The Leaf ninja pressed their backs together, staring at the newcomers in bewilderment. Sakon smirked at his prey. Kidomaru placed one set of hands on his hips. The other two sets hanged limply at his sides. Jirobo stared impassively at the four younger teens. Tayuya, arms crossed, didn't really care for the feeble looks she was getting from the younger ninja. They appeared to be nothing more than genin. "Man, what could Orochimaru-sama want with her?" Kidomaru pointed a finger.

"Yeah, she looks as bit as average as this other trash," Sakon commented.

"This one is Uchiha Sasuke. We cannot kill him either." Jirobo shifted his weight. Sasuke glared at the bigger—much bigger—ninja.

"You guys made a big mistake!" The blond ninja suddenly shouted. Sakon raised an eyebrow, slightly amused.

"Oh, they can speak even though they're shaking with fear? What a brave bunch of insects."

"I'm telling you that you made a big mistake." Sasuke lowered his head as he spoke.

"Yeah, a big one," Neji agreed, lowering his head as well.

"What the hell…? These brats are pissing me off!" Sakon clenched his teeth. "What the hell are they going on about?! What mistake?!"

"The mistake that will cause you all to be killed." The girl lifted her head. "My teammate is very pissed right now. I don't know why, but she really wants to kill you."

"You pissed her off—bad move," Naruto said. Sakon almost growled. To him, it sounded as if he were getting made fun of. He grabbed Naruto by the collar. The blond shinobi frowned. "I guess you're first then—sucks for you. She's really mad right now."

Sakon was about to retort, but before he could an arrow shot out of seemingly nowhere and went through his head—as well as his brother's. Surprised, Sakon could only blink. His eyes focused on the arrow coming from his mouth. Blood was already rushing out of his body. A second arrow went through the back of the other head. Ukon coughed out blood. It was then that he noticed the note—the explosive note—attached to the end of the arrow. Another explosive note was attached to the second arrow as well. "Br-Brother…" Ukon gagged.

"SAKON…!" His teammates finally snapped out of their stunned stupor. By then, it was nothing they could do. They had noticed the notes. Each of them gapped, and then moved to get away.

"Da-Da-Damn… this-this _does_… suc-"

The Sound shinobi never finished his sentence. It was at that time that the two explosive notes went off. Many of his body parts were burnt and charred as they rained down from the sky. The clones, which were caught in the explosive, popped out of existence. Jirobo was not as fast as his other two teammates, and had barely escaped the explosion without harm. Half of his body had been burned. He screamed out. "Clones…?! It was all a _trick_!"

"I'm afraid so," a cold voice confirmed. The big shinobi's eyes grew wide, hearing the sound of a thousand chirping birds. His beady eyes looked down. Jumping up towards him was Uchiha Sasuke—his most powerful attack in the palm of his hand. "**Chidori**…!" His shout was heard by everyone around as his hand plunged through Jirobo's gut. Sharingan red eyes glared at the Sound ninja. The two began to plummet towards the building, Jirobo landed first. With a sick squishing sound, Sasuke pulled his bloody hand out of the Sound ninja's stomach. Jirobo's eyes rolled into the back of his head. He was officially dead.

Kidomaru and Tayuya stared in shock. The two had landed away from the Uchiha. Half of the Sound Four were killed almost instantly—and just by a simple surprise attack! Slowly their eyes moved towards the one responsible for Jirobo's death. Suddenly, a girl jumped down next to him. In her hands was a bow. She was already poised to attack with another arrow. She was the one who caused Sakon and Ukon's death. "I can't believe it…" Kidomaru glared at the two ninja from the Leaf village. "They were killed by _them_?!"

"You little shits!" Tayuya didn't really care about her two fallen comrades. But she was a bit miffed that half of the group was taken out so quickly. She was more annoyed that she had been caught off guard. "Who do you think you are?! How can trash like you even think of taking on the Sound Four?!"

"The Sound Four…?" The Leaf kunoichi laughed, almost maniacally. "I think it should be renamed to the Sound Two, wouldn't you agree, Sasuke?" The Uchiha nodded his head in agreement before narrowing his eyes.

"I don't know what you did to get her angry like this, but… I get pretty angry myself when she's this way—makes me want to hurt the ones causing the anger." The young shinobi balled up his fist as he continued to glare at the two ninja from the Sound village.

Kidomaru opened his mouth and spewed a thick mucus type rod. The rod shot towards the two Leaf ninja. They only jumped out of the way before it made contact though. The end of the rod crashed into a window, causing glass to shatter and fall to the ground below. Out of nowhere, Neji jumped onto the rod and ran towards the Sound shinobi. Kidomaru's eyes grew wide. "Shit!" Tayuya cursed as she moved away. These little shits were playing around, she thought.

"Damn it!" Kidomaru quickly bit down on the rod, causing it to start to dissolve. Neji, however, was faster and reached him before he could move. The male Hyuga moved into a position to attack.

"You brought this on yourself, I suppose." He lowered his body, and then unleashed his attack. "**Eight Trigrams: Sixty-Four Palms**!" Neji started off with two strikes, followed by four, then eight, then sixteen, then thirty-two, and then ended it with sixty-four strikes. With each strike, the attack became faster and stronger, which knocked Kidomaru right through a wall. Neji waited a moment before returning to his comrades' sides. The three looked towards the last member of the Sound Four.

Tayuya gritted her teeth, realizing that she was now alone. Those three idiots barely lasted a minute against them. Her chances of living were quickly dwindling. But there was no way in hell she was giving up without a fight! She quickly took out her flute. She knew exactly how to handle the three of them. Wait—three?! _"Shit…! Where's the other one?!"_ The stamping of feet caused the Sound kunoichi to turn. When she did, she was met with a punch to the jaw, which sent her soaring backwards. She felt a foot hit her back, sending her up and causing her to cry out. She was barely aware that a clone had done it. She forced her brown eyes to open, only to see a heel heading towards her face.

"**Uzumaki Naruto Barrage**!" Luckily, she managed to bring her arms up to block the foot. The strength behind the attack, however, sent her hurtling towards the roof of the building. She crashed, hearing a crack as she did. Blood shot out of her mouth. Naruto flipped away from the female teen, over to his faction.

"You totally just made that up, didn't you?" Sasuke questioned, turning to his blond teammate. Naruto the back of his head nervously.

"_Hehe_…"

"Moron."

"That ended quickly. Now we must continue on." Neji turned. He was surprised to see Kidomaru glaring at him. "What is this?!" Forming on the Sound ninja's skin was some kind of gold-colored armor. "… That means my attack did nothing." The armor cracked, and then fell from Kidomaru's body. He glared at the four with hateful eyes.

"That's correct. Chakra-based attacks won't penetrate it."

Kidomaru's cheeks expanded. It seemed as if he were chewing on something. He suddenly spit out what seemed to be spider webs. Almost instantly, Naruto and Sasuke were caught up by the sticking webs. Mayu and Neji dodged by jumping up. The two teammates were stuck to a building wall, trying desperately to get out of their bindings. "What the heck…?! I can barely move at all!" Naruto struggles were all in vain. Sasuke only glared at the spider-like teen.

"You freaky bastard!"

Kidomaru ignored the insult. He was too busy dodging an arrow that came from the sky. Mayu growled when she missed her target. She landed away from her comrades. "A long-ranged fighter, huh? This should be an interesting game." His curse began to spread across his face. It was at that moment that Tayuya stood. She glared at Naruto.

"You fucking prick!" Her curse spread from the back of her neck to all over her face. She performed hand signs before slamming her palm against the roof. "**Ninja Art: Summoning Jutsu**!" Three giant grotesque creatures appeared behind her.

Sasuke's eyes grew wide. _"Another long-ranged fighter?"_ He once again tried to get out of his sticky situation. _"If I can just get to her, I could beat her."_ Tayuya began to play on her flute. Immediately, the three giants lunged at both Sasuke and Naruto. They were going to crush them!

"**Double Piercing Fang**!"

"What?!" Tayuya stopped playing her flute in surprise.

Two drills came out of nowhere and destroyed all three of the creatures. They disappeared in a massive puff of smoke. Naruto gapped, recognizing the attack. He, after all, had experienced it first hand. _"Way to go, Kiba!"_ He let a relieved look pass across his face.

"What, who the hell are you?!" Tayuya watched the two drills stop spinning until two humans were visible. _"Great, more twins."_ Akamaru, in the form of his human partner, growled at the Sound kunoichi. The real Kiba smirked.

"We're back up, of course." He answered, never losing his smirk.

_"Damn it!"_ Tayuya began to hurriedly play her flute. But before a genjutsu could be placed on her opponents, several needles were launched at her from an unknown location. The Sound kunoichi narrowed her eyes as she jumped away. _"Senbon…?!"_ Once she was at a safe distance, her brown eyes returned to where Kiba stood. Not only was his 'twin' there, but there was another girl. "_KIN_?! What the fuck?!" Standing next to the Leaf shinobi—protecting Leaf shinobi—was the missing-nin of the Sound village.

The missing-nin brushed her black bangs from her eyes. A smirk appeared as she held up her hand. Between her fingers were three senbon. She was the one who threw them. "Tayuya," she greeted. Tayuya pulled out a Sound headband. She held it up for her ex-comrade to see. Kin recognized it as her old headband.

"I didn't want to believe that you, of all people, became a missing-nin to the Sound, but a traitor, too?" Tayuya frowned. "You have truly lost your fucking mind!" The headband dropped from the red-haired kunoichi's hand and fell with a _clank_.

"What can I say? I guess I found someone more terrifying than Orochimaru."

"You bitch!" Kidomaru yelled out. "Orochimaru-sama will kill you! Better yet, I think I will!" He flung his six hands at the traitor. Tayuya moved out of the way, knowing what was coming.

Hundreds of kunai-shaped weapons—made out of spit and chakra—were launched at Kiba, Akamaru, and Kin. Kidomaru smirked, knowing the three couldn't move. And the two behind them would be caught in the crossfire as well. What he didn't count on was someone appearing in front of the Leaf ninja. _"You dare try to hurt Naruto-kun?"_ Hinata's arms quickly moved to create a barrier of sorts. "**Protective Eight Trigrams: Sixty-Four Palms**!" The kunai-shaped weapons were instantly deflected before they could make contact with any target. The weapons were sent flying mostly everywhere. Tayuya, who wasn't fast enough, was hit. Her left shoulder had been sliced through by one of the weapons. She screamed out.

"AWESOME, HINATA!" Naruto shouted in glee. He did not see the blush that adorned the young kunoichi's face.

"Who the hell is she?!" Kidomaru shouted as Tayuya came crashing to the ground.

"Forgetting someone?" Kidomaru looked up just in time to see Mayu. She was above him, ready to fire off an arrow. He narrowed his eyes and threw an extra weapon at her. She only disappeared from his line of vision. "Down here." He looked down, only to meet a punch to the chin. The kunoichi disappeared again and reappeared at the airborne Sound shinobi's side. She delivered a spinning kick to his side. "Hinata!" Kidomaru went soaring towards the Hyuga heir. She quickly performed the Protective Eight Trigrams technique again, sending the spider-like ninja up. Mayu pulled the string back, aiming for older teen. "Die." She released her arrow. At impeccable speeds, the arrow moved towards the target. Kidomaru managed to turn his body slightly, so the arrow only went through his leg.

With a painful shout, the teen crashed through the roof. _"Shit, shit, shit! There's too many of them!" _Kidomaru didn't bother to stand. The armor around him cracked and fell. _"I guess I'll have to go up a level."_ The mark spread, turning his skin a darker shade.

"_This is fucking bad!"_ Tayuya gripped her flute in her hand. With clenched teeth, she stared up at the sky. Her body hurt. That punch, that stab wound, those kicks—they were all taking their toll on her. She felt her body being lifted by the front of her shirt. Uchiha Sasuke had been released from his sticky prison—as had Uzumaki Naruto—and was now glaring at her with Sharingan eyes. _"Looks like I'm going to have to use stage two."_

"I happened to overhear your teammates talking… Why does that creepy snake bastard want my teammate?" Sasuke's grip grew tighter. Tayuya smirked.

"How the fuck should I know?" Her skin became a darker shade. Her brown eyes became golden in color. Her hair grew longer, and multiple white horns sprouted from her head. Sasuke's red eyes expanded at the Sound kunoichi's transformation. "To me, she doesn't look special at all." Tayuya balled up her fist, and then let the Uchiha get a taste of it. Because she had gained strength with the Cursed Seal, he was thrown a few feet away from her.

"Are you okay?" Naruto asked as Sasuke stood, clutching his stomach. He turned his blue eyes to the transformed Tayuya. "Just what the heck are you?!" She grinned, feeling confident.

"I'm someone who's way above your level, second rate." The insult only made Naruto glare at her. He was getting tired of people—who didn't even know him—underestimating him. He stepped forward. "_Aw_, you wanna try you luck?" Tayuya pressed her flute to her lips. "Isn't that cute?" Her voice was sarcastic. "I'll play the melody of death for you all." Before she could start, though, Mayu appeared in front of her. Her golden eyes widen in shock. _"She's fast…! Wait a minute… She has a cursed seal, too?"_ She watched the mark spread across the girl's face. As quick as lightning, the Leaf kunoichi grabbed the flute from Tayuya's hands.

"So you're going to play us a melody of death, ne?" The grin on the girl's face made Tayuya shiver. The grin screamed bloodthirsty rage. "How will you do that when-" The younger kunoichi snapped the flute in half. "-your musical instrument is broken?"

"_My only weapon! Holy shit! She broke it as if it were nothing but a twig!"_ Tayuya took a step back, cautious of the girl's physical strength. _"How the hell could she be so strong? She's not even in stage two!"_

As if reading her mind, the kunoichi spoke up. "My abilities plus her abilities plus this curse…" Her hand shot out and grabbed Tayuya's throat. The Sound ninja gagged, feeling her airway constrict. "I'm stronger than you are—even when you're like this." Her grip tightened, causing Tayuya to choke out nonsense. She grabbed the Leaf kunoichi's wrist, but it didn't do any good. The younger girl only lifted her off the ground. "I don't appreciate you hurting my friends. I feel real angry right now." Tayuya would have screamed obscenities, but she couldn't really breathe at the moment. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the girl holding half of her flute in her other hand. The end of it was sharp. She held it like a kunai. This is the fucking end, Tayuya thought, closing her eyes.

Naruto watched his teammate with horrified eyes. Yes, he knew that they had to kill, but she didn't have to be so cold-blooded. That's when he saw her arm. He noticed that the mark had moved across her arm. He remembered a past conversation he had had with her, concerning that thing on her arm. That mark was consuming her and making her do things like that. "SAKURA-CHAN…! STOP…!" His shout seemed to stop the flute from stabbing Tayuya in her abdomen. The Leaf kunoichi turned her head slightly. "THIS ISN'T YOU! THAT THING IS MAKING YOU DO THIS! DON'T GIVE INTO IT!" For a moment, everyone was completely still. Then the flute dropped from Mayu's hand.

The young kunoichi's body trembled as she turned back to Tayuya. Tears welled up in her eyes. The Sound ninja was released. Tayuya fell, gasping for much needed oxygen. "Damn it!" Mayu cursed, covering her eyes. The curse mark reverted back to its original shape. The Leaf kunoichi made several steps away from the Sound kunoichi. Her movements were stopped by her teammates. "I—this thing… I want it to go away!"

Kin stared in surprise. This crying girl in front of her being comforted by her teammates—she was different than she remembered. She was different from the girl in her nightmares. She stepped forward. "Get her out of here." Sasuke and Naruto turned to her with surprised expressions. "She's not capable of fighting right now. We don't need the distraction."

"Yeah, our mission comes first. You guys keep going." Kiba turned his head away. "That freaky spider guy probably isn't down for the count yet. We'll take care of it from here."

"Kiba…" Naruto murmured. Sasuke nodded his head, and then took off. "Wait a minute, Sasuke!"

"You're not getting away!" Kidomaru finally pushed himself from the building. He had also undergone a transformation. His hair had grown and changed colors as well; it was now a very light grey. His skin became darker. Two horns protruded out of his forehead. Also horns were now coming out of his arms. His eyes had turned a golden color just as Tayuya's had. He even gained a third eye!

Kidomaru spat out several spider webs towards the fleeing ninja. The two genin of Team 7 turned. There was no way that they could dodge the attack in mid air. Both Neji and Hinata jumped up in between the webs and their comrades. The two Hyuga quickly destroyed the webs with their Gentle Fist. "They won't get far!" The Sound shinobi watched as the three moved further and further away. The task was to get the girl, and yet she was getting away. Not only had the Sound Four been reduced to only two, but their assignment was escaping. _"I've got to take care of these lower level minions before getting the prize."_ He turned his eyes back to the two Hyuga.

Tayuya was virtually useless without her flute. He'd have to take care of them all. And with his injured leg, the chances of defeating them all seemed bleak. Quickly, the teen spit white goo in his hands. "**Ninja Art: Spider Web Net**!" He then thrust the goo in the direction of Kiba, Kin, and Akamaru. The goo transformed into a giant web and instantly trapped the three. Akamaru transformed back into his puppy form. He returned his eyes back to Neji and Hinata. "I'll deal with you two first, and then kill them and that traitor."

"Looks like we're going to fight together, Hinata-sama. I'm glad we have this chance." A smirk played on his lips as his Byakugan was triggered. Hinata turned her head to her cousin. She was surprised to hear no spitefulness or sarcasm in his voice. He seemed to be genuinely pleased with this outcome. The Hyuga kunoichi nodded her head, and then turned her activated eyes towards the enemy.

"As am I, Neji-nii-san." The two Hyuga dropped into their stances.

None of them noticed that Tayuya slipped away.

--

The Sand shinobi panted heavily. He could barely keep his eyes open. Even it he could, it was no use—his vision was blurred. He had had many battles—fought countless enemies—but none of his fights were this extreme—this _intense_. Any second now, he would surely pass out.

He had narrowly escaped from the stadium where the chuunin finals were held. He had been on his way to the perimeter of the village, wondering why he hadn't seen his comrades anywhere. He had hoped to see what the hold up was. Once the signal was given, there were supposed to be hundreds of ninja. Gaara had left—their big advantage had deserted them. Why…? He couldn't understand why his student would take off with some kunoichi from the Leaf village. Albeit, she was a bit stronger than what he probably had suspected… But that was no excuse to capture her and abandon his mission.

Baki gnashed his teeth together. All of that didn't matter now. Before he could reach the wall, he was spotted by an ANBU squad. He had runaway, but they had caught up to him. That's when it started—the intense battle that will decide if he lives or dies. _"Shit."_ He tried to focus in on his opponent—who was a female. _"To think it comes down to this."_ The other members of the ANBU squad didn't bother to jump in. It wasn't like they needed to. This girl—no, this female had attacked him like a trained wild beast. Her assault had been vicious, and fast, too. The Sand shinobi could barely keep up. He wouldn't expect anything less from a ninja of the Leaf.

He looked towards the ground. It was getting harder and harder to breathe with each passing moment. He briefly wondered why the other ANBU were just watching, and what he personally did to piss this kunoichi off. "This is the end for you." Baki narrowed his eyes at her words. "You murdered him… and now you pay with your life!" She spoke with such malice. Her very voice seemed like poison. The angry kunoichi swiftly moved her katana around. She dashed towards him, ready to kill. It may have been his bad vision, but two clones suddenly appeared at her side and were both running towards him as well. "**Leaf Style: Crescent Moon Dance**!" The clones picked up speed and before he knew it, his arms were sliced off. His eyes widen in shock—not because of the pain, but because of the attack. He had experienced it before. The Sand ninja looked up, knowing where the last attack was coming from. "Revenge!" The katana sliced at a diagonal line down his torso. "… For Hayate!"

Baki fell to the ground, defeated. Blood filled his mouth and spilled over his lips. _"I see…" _The man slowly closed his eyes. _"She must have been someone closed to that man."_ He heard footsteps coming towards his useless body. "Impressive technique—it's similar to his." The kunoichi didn't reply. Even with his dying body, he could still feel her eyes on him. "May my death be your compensation…"

And with that, Baki of the Sand breathed his last breath.

--

Sasuke dropped down on top of a shop once he was sure they were at a safe distance. His teammate, Naruto landed beside. "Why'd you stop, Sasuke?" The blond looked over to his comrade with a confused expression. The young Uchiha sighed lightly as he shifted his female teammate's weight.

"Think about it. Our mission is to retrieve Ino, and who took her? A very strong enemy—an enemy so strong that he's known as the Sand's secret weapon." Sasuke closed his eyes with a frown on his face. "Because of that fact, all of us need to be ready." Naruto was silent for a few moments before nodding his head.

"I get it. Sakura-chan doesn't feel up to it right now."

The Uchiha nodded in head in affirmation. "I killed someone… I killed someone…" Her chants attracted the attention of her teammates. "It made me kill… I killed—I am a murderer…" Naruto and Sasuke turned to each other, worried looks on their faces. Sasuke removed Mayu's arm from his shoulder and released her. She fell to her knees as if she had given up. "Murderer… Orochimaru's tool—his plaything…" Her shoulders trembled. "Nothing but an experiment…"

"Come on—snap out of it. You're not a murderer and your will is your own." Sasuke picked her up from the ground by her shoulders. He squeezed to try to get through to her. However, Mayu's head remained slanted down. "We are ninja. Our home is at stake, so we had to kill, understand? Even I killed. We both had our first kill back there—it was our first time killing, but we have no other choice. We kill to protect our home, got it?"

"But…" A bitter smile appeared. She finally looked up. The Uchiha was surprised to see tears freely flowing down his teammates face. "I didn't kill because I had to, Sasuke. I killed that guy because I _wanted_ to. I wanted to see his burnt flesh—I wanted to see his blood flow… I wanted to laugh loudly as he said his last words."

"That's… a little creepy."

Mayu gave a humorless chuckle at his response. Her hand touched the place where the Cursed Mark was. "This thing makes me think such thoughts. I almost wish I hadn't taken that hit for you, but I wouldn't force this one anyone." She clutched her arm, frowning again. "Forgive me for being so useless." She bowed her head again. "I don't deserve to be on a team with you, do I, Sasuke, Naruto?"

_POW_

Spit flew from Mayu's mouth as she hit the roof, spinning. The kunoichi turned over, holding her red cheek. She stared with wide, shocked, comical eyes. Her expression then turned angry. "Naruto, what the hell was that for?! Have you forgotten I am a girl?!"

"Shut up!" The blond clenched his fist while glaring heatedly at her. Mayu reared back slightly in surprise. Sasuke only blinked. Naruto had done it before he had a chance to. He almost couldn't believe that the blond would hit her like that. "Sakura-chan is not useless! Sakura-chan definitely deserves to be with us! I wouldn't want—_we_ wouldn't want any other person as our teammate! And so what you killed him?!" He pointed a finger. "Like Sasuke said, it's what we do to protect everyone in the village! And what is this?! What's with you being so angsty?! It pisses me off!"

"But-"

"You've been acting weird since the finals started!"

"You see, I didn't want to wor-"

"When you start to act strange, your teammates automatically know when something's wrong! So of course we start worrying! Is it that you don't trust us enough to tell us when something's getting to you?!" By now, Naruto was yelling his head off. His face was almost completely red.

"No, that's not-"

"THEN WHAT IS IT—BECAUSE I _KNOW_ THAT IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH KILLING OR THAT THING ON YOUR ARM, SO JUST TELL US ALREADY, SAKURA!"

A hand clamped down on Naruto's shoulder. Blue eyes focused on onyx ones. "That's enough, Naruto." Sasuke turned to his gaze to Mayu. "You don't have to tell us-" Protest were given by Naruto. "-not yet, at least. We have a mission to complete. We have to save Ino right now, right? Are you up for it, now?"

Stunned green eyes blinked twice. Mayu then rubbed her tears away with her arm. She nodded her head with a smile. She stood up, touching her red cheek. "Yes… thanks…" The kunoichi walked towards the two, and then wrapped her arms around their neck in a big hug. "I love you guys! You're amazing!" The two shinobi couldn't help but to blush in embarrassment. They awkwardly returned the hug.

"Yeah," they murmured in unison.

"By the way-" Mayu pulled back. "-Where's Nana?" What she got as an answer were two blank looks. "_Eh_…? You don't know?"

"_AH_!" Naruto suddenly exclaimed, dropping his fist into the palm of his other hand. Sasuke turned to him.

"Naruto-"

The blond shinobi unzipped his jacket and a black leopard fell out. For a moment, the three genin merely stared at the limp body of the feline. Mayu's green eyes expanded as it finally sunk in what she was seeing. She let out a riotous scream. "NANA-CHAN! NANA-CHAN, SPEAK TO ME!" Mayu picked up her partner and shook. The leopard made noises, signifying that it was still alive, but the kunoichi couldn't really hear them. Comical swirls had replaced the feline's eyes. Sasuke hit Naruto over the head.

"Idiot…! Did you forget we needed her?!"

"Sorry, sorry—forgot she was in there." He nervously chuckled as Mayu continued to panic.

"She had better not have lost Ino's scent!"

"Hang in there, Nana-chi!"

"NANA-CHAN!"

--

Slowly, very slowly, pools of blue were opened. Yamanaka Ino grimaced at the rays of sunlight that hit her face. Her head was pounding. Taking a blow to the skull was not fun in the least. Lifting her head, she noticed that her arms were held against her sides by… sand. The kunoichi struggled for a moment before realizing the action was hopeless. She frowned, thinking back to the last thing that she could remember. _"Damn, I think I fainted."_ Judging from the dried blood on her arm, she knew that she had been out for awhile. She knitted her eyebrows together in thought. Sand was holding her in place against a tree. After she collapsed, her opponent must've captured her. That's the only logical explanation she came up with.

Yet… Why would her opponent capture her? Because of her loss of consciousness, that should have automatically given him the win. And because of her loss, the other fights should have started. Something must have happened… _"Something must be wrong."_ Ino narrowed her blue eyes, finally sensing another presence. "Gaara… What have you done?"

The said shinobi jumped from a tree he was in. The two ninja stared soundlessly at one another. That's when she noticed. Gaara was perspiring. The kunoichi's first thought that he was hurt, but was trying not to show it. But that couldn't be it. Physically, she had never attacked him successfully. Then again, the attack she made internally might've hurt him a bit, but not to the point where his whole body was covered in sweat. _"He's not wearing his sand armor!"_ Ino realized with wide eyes.

"What…" Gaara finally spoke, causing the kunoichi to unconsciously move her gaze to his lips. "What did you… do inside my head?" Ino remained silent, not understanding his question. She didn't really _do_ anything in his mind. She didn't get the chance to. After all, Shukaku had forced her out. "I can not… I can not hear mother any longer."

"I already told you that... that thing inside you isn't your mother." The blond shifted her body, trying to find a weakness in her bindings. There were none. "Why did you take me? I lost, you won—you had no reason to take me, so why did you?" Gaara didn't respond. His silence only caused Ino to become agitated. "If you're not going to answer me, then-" The kunoichi looked around, finally noticing her surroundings. She was in a familiar setting. She knew this place. This was one of the places she chose to train in preparation for the chuunin exam finals. The sand shinobi had either come here randomly, or he really _had_ been stalking her. "-Then take me back to the stadium! Do you know who I am? I may not be as important as you, but because of who my dad is, I am held in high regard." It was definitely a bluff, of course. Sure she could probably get whatever she liked from her father if she asked, but only _he_ held her in high regard.

"It has started by now." Gaara seemed to ignore her words. Ino glared at his unconcealed disrespect. The Sand ninja ignored this as well. He looked up, seemingly in thought. "I have a limited time before someone comes for you." Gaara's gaze turned back to the blond kunoichi. She had visibly started to sweat, fully realizing her position. And yet she had not stopped glaring. "Tell me, why did you tell me those things?" Ino's face flushed. She had not been expecting such a question. "I've never heard those words spoken to me. Why did you say those things—and in battle no less?"

Ino clenched her teethed, slightly embarrassed. He was right. Saying those things to him in a battle was a bit… weird. It was just that… he reminded her so much how Sakura used to be. The young girl had been teased about her large forehead—something she wasn't in control of—for most of her childhood. Gaara's childhood was similar, albeit much more harsh. "Because I know that the thing inside of you is the reason your life must be hell. Having something you didn't ask for, having people be afraid of you because of that—it's horrible to actually see a kid _my_ age go through something like that." Ino bit her lip. "You… You must've been alone all your life… Even your siblings—your own family—didn't love you." The blond lowered her head and closed her eyes, feeling ashamed. She had been loved and treated like a princess her entire life. Things came easy to her. Who was she to say all these things when she had no experience with the pain that someone like Gaara went through? She had no right at all. "And here I was going to use the fact that you've never had anyone to love against you as a weakness. I'm as terrible as the next person. You probably don't want my pity, but I can't help but to show it. I pity your life, I pity your killer tendencies, and I pity _you_." The blond kunoichi swallowed the lump in her throat. "Why did I say those things to you? I can't really control the things that come from my mouth when I'm… passionate about something. It's in my blood, I guess." An image of her somewhat dramatic father appeared in her mind.

Gaara stepped forward. Ino, however, didn't lift her head to meet his stare. "You're crying…" It was his words alone that made her realize that she was. She sniffed and apologized even though there was nothing to apologize for. The Sand shinobi moved closer. "What you said before… about my weakness-" Ino finally looked him in the eye, blinking away the blurriness. "-you're wrong. I don't have a weakness."

Despite her current predicament, a skeptic look materialized on the kunoichi's face. "It may have been wrong of me, but I know what happened when I used your weakness against you. You were terrified." The blond scoffed as she rolled her eyes. "Your reaction—you sounded as if you were being murdered in the most brutalized way." Gaara's calm look was replaced by an angry glare.

"Your 'attack' only surprised me. I was not scared of it." Ino scoffed again, and then gave the red head a flat look. "I'll prove it to you then."

To her surprise, the sand that had encased her and the tree slowly started to fall. Her blue eyes stared at the sand as it returned to the gourd on the shinobi's back. Ino moved her arms, trying to return the feeling. She must have been in that position longer than she first though, she noted. Then his words finally sunk in. "Prove it…?" she repeated, confused. Gaara nodded. Ino blushed, realizing what he was getting at. "Wha…?! You want me to _kiss_ you?!" The shinobi nodded again. Sweat dripped from his chin. He looked as uncomfortable as Ino felt. "Why the hell would I do that?!"

"You had no problem doing it before." He almost sounded annoyed, yet Ino did not care at the moment.

"Yeah, but I was trying to _win_… and _survive_!" she practically screamed, flustered. "It may not be your fault that you're a homicidal maniac, but you're _still_ homicidal maniac! I wanted to _live_ through my match, thank you!" Gaara glared, causing Ino to shrink back. Her back pressed against the tree. "N-No offense…" She squeaked out to try to amend what she said. The glare remained on the Sand ninja's face. The kunoichi gulped.

"Would you like it if I attacked you then?" Sand came out of his gourd. Ino rapidly shook her head. "Good… Now 'bring your ass over here.'" A shocked expression surfaced on the kunoichi's mug. She then looked angry, clenching her teeth in frustration and irritation. He had just used her words against her! His words only pissed the blond off. Letting her anger get the best of her, she strutted over to the shinobi. Gaara stared impassively at her as she moved closer. She stopped inches away. Her forehead pressed against his. She smirked, already seeing the anxiety building up in his eyes. There was even a light blush on his cheeks.

"You sure you want this, Gaara? The last time, you made everyone bleed from the ears." The smirk did not disappear even at the glare she was receiving from the red-haired shinobi.

"Just get on with it, you stupid girl."

"You're the idiot who's gonna be screaming in a minute!" Her lips moved closer.

"Oh… My _God_…" A new voice caused both ninja to freeze. Slowly, Ino turned her head to where the voice came from. "I cannot believe this!"

The blond kunoichi exclaimed mindless gibberish as she moved away from the red-haired shinobi. Gaara turned his head to the four new arrivals. "Naruto, Sasuke-kun, Sakura-chan?!" Ino pointed her finger. "What the hell are you guys doing here?!" Mayu gave her fellow kunoichi a flat look.

"I find myself wondering the same thing."

"Did she even need rescuing?" Naruto also produced a flat look.

"Trying to seduce the enemy—I thought those tactics weren't use quite as much anymore…" Sasuke stared down at Ino with a bored expression.

"Oh, I see… This is the reason you've given up on Sasuke, eh? You've found a new love interest."

"That's not it at all!" Ino pointed a dramatic finger at the Sand ninja. He remained pokerfaced. "It was his idea—all his!"

Mayu made a 'yeah right' face. "It looked as if you were going to kiss Gaara-kun—just like you did in your fight against him." Ino scratched her head. A blush settled on her cheeks as she stammered out an excuse.

"That was… _strategy_…"

"That was… _flirting_!" The three genin of Team 7 spoke in unison.

"WAS NOT!"

"Two…" Gaara mumbled quietly to himself, closing his eyes. "There are TWO OF THEM!" His shout was quick to return the attention back to him. "You two are strong, and yet you don't have the eyes. What is it that makes you strong? What is your purpose?" Gaara shook his head. "It does not matter because mine is strong-"

"Let's cut the bad guy monologue short this time!" Naruto interrupted. The Sand ninja glared. "We've come for Ino, so let her go or they'll be hell to pay!"

"Gaara," Ino whispered. The red-head turned his angry sea green eyes to the kunoichi. Naruto was not happy about being ignored. "Your _purpose_…? Give me a break!" She suddenly turned irate. "You think killing random people will prove your existence?! _Purpose_, he says! I oughta slug you—maybe then you'll get some common sense!" Mayu smacked her forehead. She knew that when Ino got mad that she wouldn't shut up. The kunoichi quickly whispered something into Naruto's ear as Ino continued to rant. "I might have pitied you before, but what you're saying now is really starting to piss me off! You're not strong—you're not strong at all! People who are _truly_ strong overcome hardships! Sure, yours was definitely more extreme than what the average person has to deal with, but that doesn't really mean anything—the same principles _still_ apply! I don't pity you anymore, Gaara! I'm not even scared of you anymore! You're just a weak little boy who thinks it's 'me against the world!' People like you piss me off!" Ino didn't seem to realize that the Sand shinobi was becoming more and more unstable with each word she spoke. "And why in the hell are you screaming, you baby?!" … Or perhaps she did. "Are you trying to cry to your 'mother' again? I told you that thing inside isn't your mom!"

The three genin watched as Gaara began to transform before their very eyes. Half of his body morphed into something out of the ordinary. "SHUT UP!" Gaara screamed launching his demonic arm at Ino. The kunoichi's blue eyes expanded at the sight of the oncoming arm. She, most likely, wouldn't be able to dodge it. Suddenly, she felt herself being lifted up. A split second later, she heard a crashing noise. She opened her eyes to see that she was being carried by Uzumaki Naruto.

"Man, Ino, you sure do know how to piss off an enemy!" With the blond kunoichi in his arms, the clone jumped to a safety.

"Shut up, Naruto! _He_ pissed me off _first_!"

"Oh, that's mature!"

"You don't have room to speak, idiot!"

"I'm going to drop you…"

"I don't really want to fight you, Gaara-kun!" Mayu stared down at the Sand shinobi. He turned and looked up at her. "But… I will if I have to." Gaara narrowed his eyes. Half of his face had transformed as well. He had a wild expression plastered on his face as he grinned cruelly.

"You have no choice in the matter! You—both of you are… PREY!" He jumped at the two at such speeds. Luckily, both genin were quick to move away.

"Great… What did I do to become Gaara-kun's prey?" Mayu watched as the spot, where she had been standing, was demolished. She landed on another sturdy branch. Sasuke dropped down beside her.

"It's because he sees me as a strong person, and because you fought me and nearly won, he sees you as another strong person too." Mayu scowled, looking at Gaara as he frantically looked around for them.

"What is it with guys and fighting strong opponents? I hope I wasn't this bad with you."

"…"

"… Shut up."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Finished April 17, 2009

This chapter was kind of tough for me. Writing a fight with more than two people is hard to do and it gets confusing. I was practically like "what the hell am I writing?!" for most of the chapter.

Hopefully, this is the last time that Mayu is all angst. Yes, I'm aware that Mayu is normally a cheerful, funny person, but I'm sure that anyone would change drastically after all that has happen. But never fear! She'll be back to her fun self—and crazy and funny stunts—in the next chapter. I hope to add a little more humor from here on.

And yes, I killed off the Sound Four ahead of time. Their deaths are vital to upcoming chapters.

Next time: _The Flame in All of Us_!

I dedicate the next chapter to TFKfan-118! Hope she reads it!

I'm looking forward to your amazing reviews!

--


	16. The Flame in All of Us

The Sand ninja came to a stop. The reason for the halting of movement was because a figure had come into view. The line of ninja at the front squint their eyes, ignoring the protest coming from the comrades behind them. One shinobi raised an eyebrow. The figure seemed to be nothing more than a man. A lone man—a shinobi—with only a staff as a weapon. The red-haired, chubby man seemed to be heading towards them. Realizing this, a few Sand ninja chuckled. "What? They send only one to fight us? Oh, no…! Leaf village have _mercy_!" More laughs came because of this sarcastic remark. "Come on; let's go right through that fatass!"

The Leaf shinobi's eye twitched. He, however, continued to move towards the Sand ninja. The purple marks on his face stretched as a humorless smile appeared. "**Ninja Art: Super Expansion Jutsu**!" His powerful voice rang out as the enemy grew nearer. Some trembled at the loud octaves, feeling a sense of dread, but continued to charge nonetheless. The Leaf shinobi released a ferocious battle cry as his entire body grew. His size was now equivalent to a large summon. The Akimichi shinobi raised his giant staff above his head. The Sand ninja below him looked like ants to his eyes. "YOU SHALL NOT _PASS_!" He brought his arms down, about to crush about fifty ninja.

Many of those ninja could only watch as the massive hands and staff came down upon them. "… Mommy…" One ninja squeaked before he was squashed. The sound of human bodies being smash did not faze the giant Akimichi as he reached to slam his giant hand down on fleeing Sand ninja. Before he could hit, though, two other ninja jumped on his hand.

"We can't let you do all the work, Chouza!" The blond man had unknowing saved another fifty Sand ninja from being mashed against the ground.

"It's troublesome… but Inoichi's right." The scar-faced man sighed, and then looked down at the frightened looking enemies. "I'll deal with this group. Inoichi, Chouza, you two should help out the Hyuga and Inuzuka clans—they're probably fighting each other rather than the enemy." The blond smirked.

"You got it, Shikaku!" Inoichi ran up his giant friend's arm. "Just like old times, huh, Chouza?" The Akimichi nodded once the Yamanaka reached his shoulder. "Let's go!"

Chouza pulled his hand away from over the group of Sand ninja just as the Nara jumped down right in the middle of the enemy. For a moment, they only watched the giant man leave. They then turned to the unaccompanied Leaf ninja. They slowly started to regain their confidence. After all, what could this one person do against their numbers? "Ha! You're outnumbered! Your comrades have deserted you!" This taunt was ignored. Shikaku merely sighed again.

"I can't believe our allies have become our enemies—troublesome…" The man cracked his knuckles. "But I guess I don't have a choice." His hands quickly created a Rat sign. "**Shadow Possession Jutsu**!" Shikaku's shadow quickly expanded and captured and became one with over a hundred Sand ninja. Because they were all surrounding him and standing close to one another, their shadows were caught. It was because of all the enemies' shadows that the Nara's range had become wider. "There, now you're all trapped."

"A lot of good that did you!" Many, including the one that spoke, were frustrated at their current positions. "You only restricted our movements! You can't attack us! We know all about the Shadow Bind Jutsu!" Shikaku only stared at the one who had spoken. He made an '_hm_' sound. He feigned confusion.

"I think you're wrong about two things," he stated, scratching the side of his head. To the surprise of all around, they were forced to do the same. "First, it's called the Shadow Possession Jutsu, not Shadow Bind Jutsu. Your research is outdated. Second, your movements aren't restricted." Shikaku put his arm down. All those caught did the same, although they struggled. "But you do follow _my_ movements." The Leaf ninja blinked, and then smirked. "Here, I'll show you." He moved his right foot back. "You put your right foot in. You put your right foot out." He did so. "You put your right foot in, and you shake it all about!" The man sang as he followed his own instructions. To their horror, the Sand ninja were doing the same. "You do the Hokey Pokey, and you turn yourself around-" he spun around, causing his enemies to do the same. "That's what it's all a-_bout_!" He finished off with two claps, making the Sand ninja do the same.

"YOU BASTARD!"

"DOUCHEBAG!"

"WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?!"

"HOW COULD YOU MAKE US DO _THAT_?!"

"YOU SICK JACKASS!"

Multiple shouts of anger were thrown Shikaku's way. He twisted his pinky in his ear. The enemy did the same. "You are too loud." He lowered his eyelids and frowned. "I suppose I am wasting time, and chakra, though. I guess this is the end." He formed more hand signs. "I'll take you out all at once. **Shadow Strangle Jutsu**!" The shadows extended, and wrapped around each ninja's body in the form of hands. The ninja could actually feel as if a real hand was reaching up to choke them. Shadow fingers wrapped around necks, causing choked out nonsense to be heard. Sweat trickled down Shikaku's face. He needed to speed things up. With effort, he caused the shadows' grip to become stronger. The sounds of snapping necks filled his ears. He waited a few moments before releasing the jutsu. All around him, enemy ninja dropped down to the ground—they were all dead. "Troublesome…" he murmured, sighing. Then he ran off to join his comrades.

--

Hyuga Hiashi had his eyes closed. However, he could clearly hear about ten enemy ninja surrounding him. He, and several other Hyuga clan members, had been fighting for the past twenty minutes. The enemy had somehow isolated him from the rest of his team. But, the Sand's numbers were slowly dwindling thanks to his clan's help. He heard the stomping of feet. It seemed to be solo. The Head Hyuga snapped his eyes open, Byakugan activated. He quickly slammed his hands against his opponent's body. The hit had instantly killed the man with the kunai because Hiashi had targeted the chakra pathways around his heart. He was dead before he hit the ground.

The others had become bold and decided to attack on their own. He knew the perfect attack to get rid of them all in one strike. "**PIERCING FANG**!" A shout came, and before Hiashi had a chance to blink, his opponents were all tore apart before his very eyes. He scowled with his eyes landed on his comrade; he deactivated his bloodline. She turned to face him with an arrogant smirk on her face. "You're so slow, Hyuga!" She did not seem to be bothered by the glare she was getting. She actually seemed to enjoy the anger coming from her Hyuga comrade. "I guess the Hyuga aren't as great as they say."

Hiashi's eyebrow twitched. "And I suppose it's true when they say that the Inuzuka clan is nothing but a pack of mindless, wild beast." It wasn't in his nature to give retorts and get involved in petty arguments, but Tsume had been taunting his since they began fighting. Although, the Hyuga didn't show it often, they were as prideful as the Inuzuka. There was only so much that he could take.

"What'd you say, you feminine male?!" Tsume growled.

"You do not have room to speak, having no feminine features yourself."

"I dare you to say that again!"

"The truth doesn't need to be stated twice!"

"DICK!"

"I just bet you do wish you had one!"

"I'm gonna beat the shit outta you, Hyuga!"

The two clan leaders were so busy arguing that they did not notice Sound and Sand ninja sneaking up, kunai at the ready. Fortunately, help had arrived just in time. "**Secret Jutsu: Insect Sphere**." The newcomer spoke in a soft, stoic. His comrades did not hear his voice, nor did the enemies. By the time they realized that thousands of tiny bugs were consuming their bodies, it was too late. The bugs had succeeded in covering their bodies completely. It was their cries of pain and fear that snapped the clan heads out of their bickering. Tsume blinked, watching as the bugs drained away the chakra of the screaming ninja. Both she and Hiashi turned their eyes to the Aburame, who had seemed to appear out of nowhere. "It is not wise to quarrel in the mist of a war. I advise you not to in the future—it could cost you your lives. Our sons and daughter seem to get along just fine, why can't you?"

"Who asked you, you creepy sonnavab-" Tsume bit her tongue. The man had been right. Starting another argument wasn't the thing to do at the moment. Besides, he was the father of her son's teammate. "-Bug…" she lamely finished. "I guess I should thank you, Shibi." The man known as Aburame Shibi only nodded, his way of saying thank you, Tsume guessed.

"We should head back. There are many other enemies that must be dealt with." The man turned and walked away, not waiting for the two to follow. Tsume and Hiashi glanced at one another, silently agreeing to put aside their differences for now.

"You're still girly, though."

"And you're still manly."

The two narrowed their eyes before dashing off in different direction.

--

Haruno Sakura sniffed several times before wiping her nose with her arm. Her blue eyes stared hard at the newly spoiled dirt. That woman—Haruno Michiyo—was a few feet beneath her standing form. She had finished burying her mother only a few minutes ago. Her grave had been the location where she had died—underneath a tree. Thinking back, Sakura recalled that her father, a man she barely knew, had died and been buried in the same spot. Who would have ever thought that she'd be the one to bury her own mother? "Cruel…" the girl murmured, lowering her head. The girl pulled a kunai from the pouch that she found.

She stared at it for a moment before kneeling down in front of the tree. Sakura began to roughly carve 'Haruno' into the bark of the tree. After she was finished, she stood and wiped the dirt from knees. "I won't join you yet, mother." She turned and slowly began to walk away from the grave. _"Suicide would be pointless and stupid—something a little girl would do. No, I'm not like that—I'm not a little girl anymore. This tragedy that has happen to me will not allow me to die until I destroy those responsible."_ Sakura clenched her fist, replaying what had happened in her mind.

The young kunoichi suddenly felt a tingling at the back of her neck. _"Instinct…?"_ she thought as she moved her body to the left. She jumped back to avoid another pair of kunai. Her blue eyes scanned the surrounding area. If her memory was correct those kunai came from above. Her attacker was amongst the trees. Sakura frowned and remained in the same spot. It didn't take long for her opponent to reveal himself. It was another Sound ninja. The girl clenched her teeth, causing a grinding sound to be heard by her ears only. Just gazing at the arrogant smirk on the man's face caused her blood to boil. He was the same as the man that had killed her mother. The kunoichi's body tensed.

The Sound ninja took another kunai from his weapon's pouch. "Any last words?" was his clichéd question. Sakura met his stare; there was not any hesitation in her eyes. Actually, there was barely much of anything in those blue depths. This lack of emotion coming from the girl slightly freaked the Sound shinobi. He gripped the handle of the kunai in his hand before launching it at the unmoving girl.

It was then that time seemed to slow down to a snail's pace. The sharp weapon moved towards Sakura. Inches away, the kunoichi moved her head slightly. The blade sliced through her cheek. When the pain registered in her brain that is when she bit down. Time pick up again, making it seem as if the kunai had done quite a lot of damage. The hit had thrown the girl back several feet. The Sound ninja grinned at his victory. Sure, she was just a little girl, but that was one less villager to take care of. He turned his back on the motionless body, convinced that he had won. What he had not been counting on was the sharp pain he felt. A kunai had punctured his shoulder.

Eyes wide, he fell to the ground screaming in pain. He fell flat on his face. The contact with the hard dirt broke his nose, causing blood to ooze out of his nostrils. Blood also flowed out of his kunai wound. The man heard footsteps coming toward him, but he was in too much pain to move. A hand grabbed the back of his headwear and pulled him up to his knees. It was the girl, he assumed. Another kunai jammed into his ribcage, making him cry out. To make matters worse, the girl had twisted the weapon, causing an even bigger injury. She released her grip on the kunai, only slightly relieving him of the massive amount of hurting. The man felt her other hand grip the left side of his head. The hand that had grabbed his headwear before was now on the right side of his head.

Sakura leaned down. Her lips were centimeters away from the man's ear. Her touch was tender, which was unnatural considering the situation. "Do you know how you'll be remembered?" The man did not respond to her question. He was too busying asking himself why he had split up from his group and why he had to run into such a psychopathic little bitch. His body trembled. Not even the kunoichi in the Sound village were this cruel. They would take out an opponent in an instance. This girl, however, was drawing it out, mocking him. This thought angered the man greatly.

He jerked away from the kunoichi, yet did not get very far before a kunai was thrust into his leg, making him become immobile. Sakura once again lifted the man to his knees. "Do you _know_ how you'll be remembered?" Her question had not changed. Was she really expecting an answer? There was no way he was giving her one. Bleeding all over the place was a bit of a distraction. "I'm pretty sure that up until this point, your life has been pathetic and worthless. Honestly—killing innocent people…? You are definitely not a man, but a beast. Your existence has not been noted at all because you are unimportant. But do you know how you'll be remembered?" The same question came from her mouth. It was rhetorical. It seemed as if she was going to answer that question herself. "You'll only be remembered as being Haruno Sakura's first…"

The kunoichi twisted the man's neck until a loud crack echoed throughout the area.

--

Uchiha Sasuke dodged yet another strike from newly transformed Gaara. He gritted his teeth as he dove behind the safety of a tree. This safety, however, wouldn't last long. The Sand ninja would most likely find him within a few short minutes. Both Naruto and Mayu watched their teammate pant heavily from a distance. "Damn it!" The blond shinobi curled his fingers into a fist. "Sakura-chan! Why can't I help? Sasuke is getting thrashed!" His blue eyes turned to his female teammate. She was staring intently at Gaara.

"Sasuke has not gotten hit yet. He's probably only out of breath from running around and dodging Gaara-kun's attacks." Mayu's green eyes turned to her fellow kunoichi. "Ino, Gaara-kun's much faster than he was in your match, right?" The blond kunoichi gave an affirmative nod. "So that transformation he went through gave him a boost of power, huh?"

"Are you afraid of me, Uchiha Sasuke?" Ino grimaced, watching the drool slide down his deformed chin. "Why do you run away?!" Gaara clutched his head, yelling as if he were in pain. "Why… do you always run away?" He repeated his question in a whisper. His sea green eyes became unfocused as if he wasn't paying attention to his surroundings—rather something that happened in his past. Suddenly, the Sand ninja starting screaming again. He frantically searched for his Uchiha prey. "You're not getting away… UCHIHA SASUKE!" In his frustration and impatience, Gaara began to destroy the surrounding trees, hoping to flush out his opponent.

The three Leaf ninja watched as tree after tree fell down because of Gaara's might. "This ain't good," Mayu murmured, narrowing her eyes. Ino nodded gravely. She was really glad that she had not gotten the experience of his transformation in her match against him. That would have been hell, and she probably would've given up in an instant, regardless of how strong she'd gotten.

"He's too strong," she whispered. Sasuke suddenly appeared near Ino. She nearly jumped in surprise at his appearance. "Sasuke-kun…!"

"It's no good. This guy is unreal." The Uchiha continued to pant as his teammates turned to him. "He probably doesn't have any special jutsu, and based on his match with Ino, he doesn't have any taijutsu abilities either. But… his physical strength is off the charts. And that body of his—I doubt anything could penetrate it."

"That's what happens… when there's a demon living inside you." Ino's statement caused all heads present to turn towards her.

"D-Demon…?" Naruto blinked in surprise and astonishment.

The blond kunoichi nodded again. She frowned as she thought about the month prior to the final exam. "Because I knew that I was going up against a strong opponent, I wanted to find out everything I could about him—anything I could use to gain some type of an advantage." She lowered her eyelids. "I knew I wouldn't be able to stand a chance against him otherwise, so I researched him. I was able to find out many things—things I probably was never meant to find out, and yet I did. Gaara is the youngest kid of the current Kazekage, and the brother to those other two Sand ninja." Ino paused before continuing. "You guys heard the stories about the Nine-Tailed Fox—Kyuubi, right?" Naruto flinched at the mention of the powerful demon. Mayu only glanced in his direction. Sasuke nodded.

"Yeah," he replied. "He was a demon that terrorized our village. The Fourth Hokage killed it, though. What does that have to do with anything?"

"Apparently, there are more demons in the world other than the Kyuubi." A surprised expression appeared on Sasuke's face. "And one of those demons is sealed up in Gaara." Speaking of the demon holder, he was being ignored at the moment. The Leaf ninja were too caught up in the story being told by Ino to notice that the forest was being ripped apart. Even the Sand shinobi's screaming was ignored. "When he was born—that's when it happened. The sealing of Shukaku, the demon, took place. This was meant to make Gaara the Sand's ultimate weapon. But because it was a demon, the villagers feared and despised him. He was alone since birth. No one truly loved him all because of something that was out of his control." Naruto grind his teeth. Gaara's childhood was similar to his, after all. They weren't alike, and yet they were. As he continued to think about the similar traits they shared, he realized something.

_"That time at the hospital—so that's why…"_ The blond stood, causing three pairs of eyes to focus on him. "I have to-"

"Not yet!" Mayu interrupted her teammate. "First, we have to let Sasuke play around with him for a little while longer."

"_Play_ around?!" Sasuke glared at his female teammate. "I almost died!"

"That's because you were only running. You weren't attacking with all your might. Use your Sharingan—that should help, right?"

"You heard what Ino said! This guy isn't normal! He has a demon inside of him. Nothing will hurt him!" Sasuke continued to protest. "The four of us might be strong, but… how can we hurt a demon?"

"Your Chidori could cause some damage." Sasuke's eyes widen. He had nearly forgotten. "You're right, there is a demon involved, but the Chidori is a powerful attack and it could weaken him enough to the point where he can no longer move or attack." The Uchiha was quiet for a few moments, listening to the taunting that was coming from Gaara. He nodded his head.

"Got it… I'll deal with him the best I can."

"Be careful, Sasuke."

"You better not die!"

"Right."

Sasuke jumped away from the branch. Mayu frowned as she removed the bow from her shoulder. She loaded an arrow and aimed for Gaara. "Sakura-chan…?" Naruto almost looked confused.

"If Sasuke gets hurt… I might kill Gaara-kun—something I don't want to have to do. If the mark spreads, Naruto, it's up to you to stop me." She turned her green eyes to the blond shinobi. He nodded.

"_Mark…?"_ Ino thought. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted some type of blinking light. It was the Chidori. "It's Sasuke-kun—I see him!" Because of her exclamation, the two teammates looked toward where she was pointed.

The Uchiha was already in flight with Chidori in the palm of his hand. Gaara merely grinned before propelling himself at the Leaf ninja. It wasn't long before their collision occurred. The lightning attack sliced through Gaara's demonic arm. The red-haired shinobi screamed out loud. The excruciating pain that he had experienced was something he had never felt before. Mayu gapped; her shoulders sagged, causing the arrow to fall out of place. She had seen it many times before, but she had never felt like this. She actually felt like crying. Gaara was a real person now—they were all real…

Sasuke looked back at Gaara out of the corner of his eye. He had not been hit, but he had managed to do a lot of damage to his opponent's arm. The Sand shinobi landed harshly against a branch as the chirping sound disappeared along with the Chidori. Through Sharingan eyes, Sasuke continued to stare at the motionless body of Gaara. _"… It looks like I took care of him."_ His body tensed once he realized that his opponent wasn't in agony. He was actually laughing! Sasuke furrowed his eyebrows together as Gaara sat up.

His laughter became loud and obnoxious. It echoed through the forest, adding to Sasuke's irritation. The Sand ninja slowly rose to his feet. He grinned manically at Sasuke. "I see…" He grabbed his wounded demonic arm. "I know why this is exciting! This pain… What a thrill it will be to crush an opponent that can cause me such pain!" By this time both blonds of the group started to get angry. "More! I want more!" Sasuke stood up to face Gaara. He was surprised to see more sand forming a tail-like thing, which looked similar to the warped arm.

Still grinning like a mad man, Gaara used his demonic features to launch himself at the Uchiha. But before he reached him, something whizzed by, inches from his face. He stopped, both bewildered and angered. He frenetically looked away for the person who tried to attack him. He knew that it hadn't been the Uchiha. "Forgetting someone, Gaara-kun?" That voice came from above. He looked up to see that kunoichi. She was standing next to the Uchiha, another arrow ready to fire. "Aren't I your prey, too?"

"Mayu…!"

"You!" Gaara grabbed his head again. He had gotten so distracted by the Uchiha that he had completely forgotten about the other one. But she… She is…

_Kawaii…!_

A growl escaped his lips. His nails pierced his skin. More screams and grunts echoed through the forest. He had remembered the girl from past encounters. Her grin, her attitude, her eyes, her voice, her warm smiles—he remembered it all.

_But you can call me Mayu-chan if you want!_

Everything…

_Hey there, Gaara-kun…! Do you… remember me?_

Everything…!

_I want to be your friend._

He remembered it all!

"You…! You're just like Yashamaru! You deceitful little wench! You're the same—you're just another liar!"

"WHAT?!" Her enraged shout startled Gaara, as well as everyone else. He looked up at her, completely confused as to why she sounded so angry. "Yashamaru?! YASHA-FUCKING-MARU?!" The arrow that had been in her hand snapped. "You say I'm the same as him? I have not lied about anything! The love and adoration that I've shown and had for you are real! I love Gaara! I have always loved and sympathized with Gaara. Gaara is the only one that deserves my fangirling attention! The _only_ one! You, Gaara-kun or not, have no right to compare me to that man!" Gasps were heard because of this fangirl rant of hers.

"… _I'm embarrassed…"_ Ino mentally cried a river. Did she behave that way when she was all goo-goo-eyed for Sasuke? She sure hoped not. Her friend's sudden declaration was shameful.

"_Why do I have to have such an idiotic teammate…?"_ Sasuke produced a flat look. _"And who is Yashamaru?"_

Gaara could only stare in a stunned silence. She… She couldn't be serious. She had to be lying—she just had to. The Sand shinobi clutched the skin above his heart. It was hurting again. He hadn't felt this pain in his chest in such a long time. What was it? Gaara screamed out again. "_Argh_…! STOP CONFUSING ME!" He launched himself and Mayu and Sasuke, intending on killing them. Sasuke quickly reacted to what he was seeing. He spread his arms back and fell back, forcing Mayu to do the same. Luckily she was smart enough to use her chakra to stick to the bottom of the branch like he had. The two had just merely dodged Gaara's brutal attack.

The two stared at the partially transformed Gaara. "He's become even faster!" The Sand shinobi grabbed onto branches, and then propelled himself back to his two opponents.

"I can see him! Mayu back me up!" Sasuke began forming hand signs. The kunoichi nodded, and then began doing the same. She knew that this type of jutsu might not even work on Gaara, but it didn't hurt to try. Both Sasuke and Mayu sucked in a huge breath, and then released their jutsu.

"**Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu**!"

Fire erupted from both of their mouths. The giant balls of fire fused to form a swirling twister and headed straight for Gaara. Sasuke narrowed his eyes. Not only had Gaara gone right through their attack, he had also manage to use his mutilated arm and tail to form a protective shield around his body. The Sand shinobi had also not show any signs of being slowed down. Their attack did absolutely nothing and Gaara was still speeding towards them. "Shit!" They had no time to avoid this strike. Gaara's body slammed into the two ninja. Although they had braced themselves, it did little to stop the pain that followed. Their backs went through branch after branch until they were finally stopped by a trunk. Mayu dropped down, arms shaking. She spit out blood. "Still think you're friends?" Green eyes glared at him.

"Shut up, idiot!" She turned her eyes back to Gaara, who seemed insanely happy that he had finally hit them. "Can you use Chidori again?"

"After taking that pill, I used it twice—apparently three times is my limit."

"_Three…?!"_ Mayu was surprised. Before, it had been two times. _"Could it be because he doesn't have the Curse Mark holding him back? Was the mark actually restricting his chakra development before?"_ She looked back at Gaara. He was taunting them again, saying something about their existence being weaker. Even so, Sasuke didn't seem to be angry. _"So the mark also caused him to lose his focus and be worked up so quickly… This thing alters the way someone thinks. When I'm mad and it's activated, I think differently myself."_

"So what do we do now?" Sasuke asked, standing. Mayu also stood.

"I think… Chidori and Tsukeru is our best bet," she answered.

"But when they collided with each other, they-"

"Yeah, this is why they can't collide again. It's going to be a little different."

Ino gave a frustrated scowl. "Do they really expect us to sit around and do nothing while they're getting the crap beat out of them?!" She balled up her fists. For someone like her, it was annoying that she could only sit back and watch. It was the same for Naruto, and yet he was doing the best he could.

"You heard what Sakura-chan said, Ino." His blue eyes focused on Gaara. "We can't make our move until he's completely distracted." The blond kunoichi knew this, and yet it was still so annoying. "_Ah_! Sakura-chan disappeared!" Naruto had been right. Ino could only see Sasuke with his Chidori in his palm.

"Where'd she go?!"

Her question wasn't answered because it was at that moment that Sasuke jumped from the tree and headed for Gaara. The Sand shinobi seemed unconcerned for the sudden disappearance of the girl. He, too, leapt at his opponent. The two would make another grand impact in mid air. "**CHIDORI**!"

"**TSUKERU**!" The kunoichi came from above with blue fire in the palm of her hand. She was going to be apart of the collision as well. The impact was so catastrophic that the two blonds had to protect their eyes in order not be blinded by the light.

Finally the light began to die down. The two blond ninja put their arms down. They saw that the three battling ninja were now on three separate branches. Mayu was on a lower branch than the two males. "Did they get him?" Ino shifted her eyes from Gaara to Sasuke to Mayu, and then back again. The three ninja were completely still for a few moments, so she couldn't tell. Her blue eyes suddenly widen. _"Wait a minute…!" _Her eyes went back to Mayu. She noticed blood, and the girl's clothes were torn. _"Did she…?!"_

Gaara's deformed tail and arm suddenly turned back into sand and fell from his body. However, the shinobi only grunted, and then grew the strange attachments back. It was at this time that Mayu had fallen to her knees. She collapsed on the branch was on. Sasuke looked down in shock. "She got hit!" Gaara turned and noticed the same thing. He grinned, focusing solely on the fallen prey. _"Get up, Mayu!"_ The Sand ninja jumped from the branch. His body headed like a torpedo at the kunoichi.

Ino watched as Gaara loomed closer and closer to her friend. "No…!" She could no longer do just anything. Using her chakra, she quickly moved in front of the fallen kunoichi. Gaara's eyes grew wide seeing the blond in his way. She was protecting her just like that man did against his last opponent. This only made him angry.

"Get outta the way!" He swung his demonic arm at Ino. The blond kunoichi braced herself for the hit. It never came. What did come, however, was the sharp cracking sound. Ino opened her eyes to see that Naruto had kicked Gaara away before she was hit. The Sand ninja's body broke through a branch before he caught himself. He glared at the one responsible for kicking his face. Naruto glared right back at him.

Mayu groaned, causing Ino's attention to be diverted to her. The blond turned her over. She gasped lightly at what she saw. Black marks covered her entire face, as well as half her body. "What the…?" Ino's eyes expanded. She remembered this… She remembered seeing this once before. In her friend's match against Hinata—marks like these were on her body. _"Is this the mark she was talking about?"_ Mayu let out more groan; they were louder than before. "Sakura…!" The kunoichi tried to push herself up, but she didn't get very far. Ino noticed the blood dripping from her mouth.

"What the he-hell…? Can I only use Tsukeru twice? Da-Damn these side ef-effects!" Mayu could barely move her body at all. In addition to this, her shoulder was causing her pain. Gaara had turned at the last second and directed an attack on her. She crumpled again, feeling drained. It appeared as if she wouldn't be any use with this condition. Sasuke appeared beside Ino.

"We have to move her." Ino nodded in agreement as Sasuke picked up his teammate. He jumped away, leaving Naruto and Ino alone.

Ino glared at Gaara. She stood up and pointed a finger. "Hey…! She said she wanted to your friend! She said she adored you! She said she loved you and _this_ is how you repay her?!" Gaara clutched his head again. Her words were affecting him more than any attack ever could. "For a person who's been alone all his life, you sure do have a weird way of showing your appreciation toward someone who actually wants to befriend you!"

"Sh-Shut up…!"

"Sakura-chan is also my friend! I won't show you any mercy for hurting her and Sasuke!" Naruto knitted his eyebrows together. _"Even if you are just like me…"_ he added as an afterthought.

"Those two… They're your _friends_?"

"Of course they are!"

Gaara grinned, and then started laughing. "And that's why you'll never win! As long as you fight for the sake of others, you'll never advance beyond this level." Naruto, not liking what was said, narrowed his eyes again. Once again, he was being underestimated. "Only one can remain undefeated, and only he will feel what its like to truly exist. Forget your friends and fight only for yourself. They will only end up clouding your judgment, causing you to die."

"Big words for someone who has never _had_ a friend!" Ino remarked with a smirk.

"What did you say?"

"You heard me! Man, you're really pissing me off again! How can you, someone who has never had a real friend, say that they only cloud judgment?" She pointed an accusing finger. "You know nothing about friendship, and when it was offered to you on a silver platter, you nearly killed it! So I don't wanna hear anything about friendship coming from your mouth!"

"You…!"

"And you're definitely wrong. Having friends doesn't make you weak. It makes a person stronger." Naruto stared at him, completely astonished. "That girl, Sakura, she was weak, shy, and had low self-esteem. You wouldn't think that looking at her now, but that's the way she used to be." The blond kunoichi smiled. "You know what happened to her? She got a friend—a friend that helped her to believe in herself. Her friend watched her grow and become more confident. Looking back now, I realize that Sakura probably wouldn't be who she was if it wasn't for that friend. That friend was me! I helped Sakura to become stronger! Thanks to me Sakura feels as if she were a better person. If it wasn't for me she would have never wanted to be your friend! She never would have been strong enough to be on a team with two equally strong guys! So before you go assuming where true strength comes from, you experience it first hand, and then you can talk! Until then, shut the hell up!"

The two shinobi merely stared at her, completely taken by surprise. Her words had a deep effect on their minds. For Naruto—he had no idea that his own teammate used to be so different. He had always thought Sakura was a strong, smart girl. He never thought of her as fragile. He admired her and her strength. And now he finds out that she might not be the same if she had not met Ino. Thinking about it, he started to wonder how he would have been if he had not a single friend. _"Would I be the same as this guy—caught in darkness everyday in his life? Could I have really been someone like him_?" Naruto clenched his fists. _"I… understand him."_

Sasuke gently laid his teammate down on the ground. She had stopped her groan, but her body was still trembling. He narrowed his eyes as he removed the bow and quiver from her body. His teammate had used nearly all of her arrows. "Mayu…" Those markings on her face were causing her this pain. If she hadn't taken that hit for him, she wouldn't be in this mess. The kunoichi grind her teeth, feeling more pain. "Mayu…!"

"Sas-Sasuke… I need ch-chakra. I won't—I won't be any help without i-it." She turned her head to the side. "He-Help me."

"I… I don't have any pills."

"Your body—I need it for a minute… It will help me a little bit." She breathed heavily as she sat up. "You… I know you can handle this thing." She grabbed Sasuke's shoulder and looked him straight in the eye. "But if you… don't want to… you don't have to… It's horrible."

For a few moments, the two were in silence. Neither one spoke a word. Only the heavy breathing from the kunoichi reminded Sasuke the situation they were in. Everyone needed to at least have some strength. He bowed his head. "Tell me what I have to do." Mayu slowly smiled. She began to create hand signs.

"Just brace yourself—it'll hurt." Sasuke nodded. "**Ishikari Style: Mind Transfer Jutsu**!"

The young Uchiha felt the familiar pull at his mind. This wasn't the first time his teammate had switched bodies. He opened his eyes to see that he was looking at himself, and from a different angle. He slowly moved to stand, only to be forced back down to his knees. "Mayu, what are you-"

"Stay still! It's-" The kunoichi was interrupted by a grunt. Sasuke fell against his body. Unimaginable pain coursed through the body he was in. It was unlike anything he had ever felt. And his teammate was walking around feeling this everyday?! He wrapped his arms around his body, digging nails into his skin. Mayu winced, yet pulled him closer. The Uchiha screamed again. "You… scream just like a girl." Sasuke quickly stifled his screams. Only grunts and groans came from his mouth—a mouth that did not belong to him.

"Sh-Shut up, idiot!"

He breathed out fast, shuddering breaths, trying to get used to the unfamiliar pain. He pressed his—her—face against Mayu's—his—shoulder. "Just a little longer, Sasuke." The Uchiha grimaced and held on tighter. He was slowly getting used to it. Although, the pain was still beyond horrific. "Alright, that should do it." Sasuke pulled back.

"Are you sure?" It was a little odd to stare at yourself, knowing it wasn't a mirror. "I… I can hold out a little… longer for you." Mayu shook her—his—head.

"It's alright…" His dark eyes were hidden. "Release." One pull at the mind later, and Sasuke was back in his body. Mayu breathed through her nose, and closed her eyes. "It doesn't hurt as much now. Thank you."

"No… problem."

"Using your Sharingan would probably be a bad idea at the moment, so I won't use it," Mayu shakily stood. Sasuke moved to steady her. "Come on, let's help those two." The Uchiha nodded again.

Gaara bowed his head. That girl—she was right, yet she was wrong. It was true that he hadn't experienced true friendship, but it was also true that he had experienced a betrayal from who he thought was a friend. He glared at the branch beneath him. "Friends are merely people who have the potential to betray." He lifted his head to reveal that his whole face had transformed. Sand covered most of his body and formed into more demonic features. Only his human legs were visible. "As you can see, I am strong because I love only myself. Friends are not important, and will only drag you down. I have no such setbacks."

Naruto glanced at his comrade. She was busy glaring at Gaara to notice. He looked back towards the Sand ninja. He bit his lip. "Ino…" The blond kunoichi looked at him. "I'll take care of this. You find Sasuke and Sakura-chan, and get them as far away as possible."

"What?! You expect them to runaway and leave you behind?! What type of teammate are you?! Sasuke-kun and Sakura would never leave you behind! They are way too headstrong!" Ino rebutted.

"Yeah, but…" Naruto looked down. "I feel like I'm the only one who can fight him…" Before Ino could question his comment, Gaara became annoyed that he was being ignored.

"What are you waiting for?! Come!" His shout caused the two blonds to look his way.

"This is gonna use up a heck of a lot of chakra, but… I've got no other choice!" Ino glanced at him.

"What do you have in mind?"

"It's time to bring in the big toad!" Naruto performed several hand signs, bit his thumb, and then slammed his hand against the tree branch underneath him. "**Ninja Art: Summoning Jutsu**!"

The Yamanaka stared in surprise as the smoke seemed to erupt from the branch. She had no idea that Naruto knew how to summon. He hadn't displayed this ability in his match against that Sand kunoichi. _"He's much stronger than I realized… He must be summoning something huge if he said it would use a lot of chakra! We might win thanks to Naruto!"_ The smoke slowly disappeared. The animal that was summoned was an orange frog with a blue vest. It was a bit bigger than Naruto's own hand. Ino let a disbelieving look cross her face. Her eyes turned to comical white circles. "What the hell is that, Naruto?! You idiot!"

"What the…? It's only a couple of squirts!" The small orange toad spoke, looking back and forth between the two blonds. "If you want to do something, you have to give me a snack. If not, I won't play with you."

"What'd you say, you slimy little-"

"You know something?!" Naruto shouted, interrupting Ino. He leaned toward the toad. "I hate you frogs!"

"What'd you say?! You better not disrespect us amphibians!" A webbed appendage was pointed at Naruto's face. The orange toad blew a raspberry at the blond shinobi. Ino sighed heavily, and then frowned. A sweat drop slid down her head.

"Don't make a fool of me!" Gaara yelled. He crossed his arms, and then spread them wide, releasing his attack. "**Sand Shuriken**!" Multiple balls of sand were hurled at the two blond ninja. Ino quickly jumped. Naruto, however, picked up the small toad and braced himself for the attack. He grunted loudly at the sand slammed into his body. It didn't cause him injuries, but the force behind the attack sent him flying back. It also hurt like hell.

Ino watched her comrade try to stand. He had protected the toad from harm with his own body. It was very heroic of him, but he got hurt in the process. "I have to do something." The blond kunoichi bit her bottom lip as he gaze turned to Gaara. He didn't even look human anymore. She couldn't attempt to use her Chakra Duel Swords again. That move was way too risky in this situation. She would only end up hurting herself again. And from this distance, her family's technique was useless as well.

"Is that all you got?!"

Naruto took a kunai from his pouch, and then wrapped an explosive note around the handle. "I'm not sure how far I'll get, but… I'll beat you even if it costs me my life! I will protect everyone!" The blond ran on the branch, and then jumped up. "**Shadow Clone Jutsu**!" Four clones appeared around him as he was midair. Gaara merely grinned at the pointless effort. He slammed his demonic arm into the oncoming clones. He managed to get three of them. The clone that hadn't been caught grabbed onto the real Naruto and launched him forward. "**Shadow Clone Jutsu**!" More clones appeared, only to be hit by Gaara's other arm. Naruto flipped over the transformed shinobi, and then created another clone. Using the duplication's back as a spring, he jumped back up. He poised the kunai to stab Gaara from behind. "**Hidden Leaf Village Secret Finger Jutsu: A Thousand Years of Death**!"

Ino and the small toad stared, completely speechless.

Naruto's attack had succeeded in hitting his opponent, but the attack itself was a bit ridiculous. The toad seemed to be disappointed, while Ino's eyebrow twitched in irritation. "I can not believe this…" The blond kunoichi shook her head in embarrassment. Who in their right mind who ever use something like that in a real battle?

Gaara, almost confused, blinked. He turned his head to see Naruto out of the corner of his eye. He growled in annoyance before his tail smacked the blond shinobi away from him. Naruto yelped at the hit, but smirked as he was in the air. "… Here comes the boom!" His back slammed against a tree just as an explosion was heard. The explosive note had been triggered. The kunai he had shoved up Gaara's bottom had exploded. The pain the blond felt was well worth it because the Sand ninja was successfully tricked.

"Did it work…?" Ino unconsciously moved forward, trying to see through the smoke. Her blue eyes widen. Gaara's form looked even more warped than before. The sand was falling off his body. The Sand ninja leaned against the tree for support. "It doesn't look like he was hurt from that. The sand must've protected him, and yet it couldn't withstand the explosion." The kunoichi suddenly heard movement. She nearly jumped at the sound of someone landed beside her. "Sasuke-kun…! Sakura…!"

"You didn't think I was down for the count yet, did you?" The kunoichi grinned. Although, she still had those dark marks all over her face, Ino was relieved to see her looking slightly stronger. The kunoichi's green eyes were on her teammate. "Looks like Naruto's about to pull this big move."

"_Ah_…" Sasuke nodded his head. "It's about time."

Ino looked back and forth between her comrades, and then focused her eyes on the blond shinobi. He was in the same position he was in like in his match against Temari. The same position he made before he had ultimately won the match. Her skin tingled, sensing what she had back at the stadium. "Naruto's gathering up an immense amount of chakra! How is he doing it?!"

"Who knows…" Sasuke murmured with envy in his eyes.

"I swear… I swear to protect everyone!" Naruto opened his mouth. "**Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu**!" A massive cloud of smoke covered the area, blinding everyone's vision. After the smoke slowly evaporated, it revealed so many clones of the blond shinobi. Ino gapped in surprise, as did Sasuke. They had no idea Naruto could create so many replicas. There were clones near them, but yet their blue eyes were focused solely on Gaara. "Sorry to keep you waiting!" The real Naruto pointed a finger at the Sand shinobi. "Get ready for an original move coming straight from my ninja handbook!"

"Naruto…!" One clone turned to him. "How did you do this?!" The clone turned his eyes back to Gaara.

"Sasuke, Sakura-chan, and Ino—all of you rest. I can tell you're tired. Leave it all up to me, Uzumaki Naruto!" Sasuke could only stare in awe. He didn't think his teammate had gotten so strong. It was impossible to summon so many clones, and yet Naruto had done it. The Uchiha bit his lip. The only possible explanation was that his chakra reserves were much bigger than anyone expected. But how… How was _that_ possible?

"_Is this really him? Is this really the strength Naruto has?"_

"Let's do this!" Naruto shouted. "Direct from Naruto's ninja handbook!" Each and every clone joined in with his shouting. Gaara looked around frantically. He had nowhere to go. "Everywhere shuriken!" The ninja weapons rained down on him. Gaara realized that his body hadn't yet recovered from the explosion from earlier. He would have to make due with what he had. He moved his arm in front of his face and allowed it to take the damage of the shuriken. While Gaara was distracted, many clones forced him up into the air with kicks. "**Uzumaki 2K**-" The rest of the clones moved in to punch the Sand ninja. "-**Naruto Barrage**!" The force of 1,998 punches hitting his body was too much for Gaara's body to handle. His sand cracked, broke, and slide away from his body, no longer able to hold the altered form. Gaara groaned, feeling the pain. The last two punches came and knocked him over the tree branch. The sand shinobi crashed into the ground, causing a dent in the ground.

"Unbelievable…!" Ino exclaimed as she stood up. "Naruto got so strong! To think he was able to do something like this! It's unbelievable." Sasuke clenched his fist at Ino's words. Mayu stared at him, and then looked back at the clones.

"Are you jealous, Sasuke?" Her teammate didn't respond. "Well, I sure am." Dark eyes turned to her in surprise. "But at the same time, seeing this display of strength from my teammate makes me feel like I can do anything." Sasuke slowly nodded his head before turning back to the battle.

"I feel the same."

Suddenly, Gaara screamed out, sounding completely enraged. "THERE'S ABSOLUTELY NO WAY I'M GONNA LOSE TO A GUY LIKE HIM!" Out of nowhere, Naruto's clones, who were about to attack, disappeared because of a large projectile that came from Gaara. It grew up and expanded. Smoke and dust covered the form, but everyone could tell it was massive just by the shadow.

"What the hell is that?" Sasuke murmured. The smoke began to depart. Ino gasped, recognizing the huge beast.

"That's him…! It-It's Shukaku!"

"Shukaku…?" Sasuke turned to her, expecting answers, but the blonde kunoichi was too stunned. Her body trembled as she continued looking up at the One-Tailed beast.

"NARUTO!" Mayu shouted, noticing that sand was covering her teammate's body. Sasuke looked his way and almost jumped to his side. Mayu, however, stopped him. "We can't do anything at the moment. You'd surely be caught as well."

"But Naruto-" The Uchiha looked back at his blond teammate. He noticed that he was smearing some of his blond on his thumb before the sand completely consumed him. "What is he doing?" Gaara chuckled, and then slowly closed his fist.

"**Sand Burial**-"

"**Ninja Art: Summoning Jutsu**!"

The summoning broke through the sand and seemed to grow larger. "_Eh_…?" Ino was flabbergasted. She shook her head, and then smiled. Hope had finally arrived. "Why couldn't he do that before?"

"He did it…" Mayu grinned.

"That guy… he's just full of surprises, isn't he?" Sasuke smirked as he continued to look up at the giant toad and his teammate, who was perched onto of the summoned toad's head.

The two of them seemed to be talking at the moment—or rather, they were arguing. But that seemed to stop after a moment. The giant toad placed a hand on the hilt of large battle knife. It pulled the knife out and held it in front of its body. The giant toad said something, and then charged toward the large beast. Surprisingly, his size did not seem to slow him down. The toad was very agile and fast. Ino gasped lightly, coming to a realization. Her other two comrades turned their eyes to her. "That's Gamabunta, the Chief Toad. Iruka-sensei told us about him during a history lesson, remember? Gamabunta teamed with the Fourth Hokage to kill the Nine-Tailed Fox."

"_Naruto summoned something that was summoned by someone as powerful as the Fourth?" _Sasuke shook his head in disbelief. _"It seems like… Naruto's on a different level than any of us."_

The ground shook, causing the three ninja to grab the tree to keep from falling. Once the shaking stopped, they looked up. One of Gaara's arms was cut off. "Whoa…!" Ino blinked. "That toad is fast and strong! No wonder he's the Chief." She squint her eyes. "What the…?" Something was coming out of the head of Shukaku. "It's Gaara…! What's he doing?" The red-haired was visible; half of his body was seen. It looked as if here was concentrated. His hands were held tight in a hand sign. His body suddenly went limp. _"Oh no… This is bad!"_ The blond kunoichi slowly backed away from her comrades, and then disappeared. They were none the wiser.

"Man, with each passing second, I feel more and more useless," Mayu commented. Sasuke nodded his head without taking his eyes off of the toad.

"All we can do is just watch." The Uchiha swallowed. "And to think I switched bodies with you and went through that pain for nothing." The kunoichi narrowed her eyes, yet did not speak. "But we have to do something. I don't want to just sit here watching. When the time comes, I will help."

"As will I, Sasuke."

Meanwhile, on top of Gamabunta's head, Naruto blinked at the limp body of his opponent. According to what the Chief Toad just told him, Gaara was asleep. The Sand ninja had forced himself to sleep so that the demon inside him could take full control. And if that demon took full control, there was no telling what could happen. A screech suddenly erupted from the giant beast's mouth. **"I'M FINALLY OUT, BABY!"**

Naruto stared, slightly amazed. "So that's the Shukaku?" The small toad on top of his head, known as Gamakichi, moved around a little. He stared at the demon.

"He's pretty funky," he remarked.

"I think he sounds more like a drunken fool." Naruto turned around at the familiar voice. The blond kunoichi gave a peace sign.

"Ino…?! What are you doing up here?!"

"I've come to help. You don't know a thing about Shukaku, and yet I do, so I will help you." Ino turned towards the demon, who was still whooping in glee.

"You know of Shukaku?" Gamabunta questioned. "What could a little girl possibly know about this demon?"

"Trust me, I get around. I've encountered this thing once before. I will be of assistance. Allow me to fight with you, Naruto and Gamabunta-sama." Naruto turned his eyes back to his opponent.

"It's going to be pretty tough, but for someone who made Sakura-chan better, I guess it doesn't matter to you."

"I think you're pretty much useless-" Ino's eye twitched. She resisted kicking the giant toad even though it wouldn't affect him much. "-However, just this once, I'll let you stay up there. This idiot is going to need all the help he can get."

"HEY!"

It was at this time, Shukaku finally calmed down… somewhat. **"I've found someone I want to kill!"** The giant beast pointed a finger. Gamabunta removed the pipe from his mouth. He warned the two blonds that he was going to fly. **"Wind Style: Air Bullet!"** The stomach of the demon seemed to expand. He then hit himself in the stomach, releasing a massive wave of air toward the giant toad. Gamabunta quickly jumped up in order to dodge the invisible attack. The toad formed a hand sign.

"**Water Style: Liquid Bullet**!"

Unfortunately, this attack did not do any good. Shukaku had quickly countered with another air bullet. The water and air collided, causing the two attacks to cancel the each other out. "Boss! Be careful! Sakura-chan and Sasuke are still over there!" Gamabunta narrowed his eyes.

"Shut up! I know that!" The giant toad landed, only to jump up again. By this time, Shukaku was unleashing more air bullets. Still in midair, Gamabunta turned and countered with more liquid bullets. Naruto's eyes grew wide.

"Hey…! Watch out, there's one more!" he yelled. The air bullet was coming too fast. It made contact, causing a huge blast.

Not even waiting for the smoke to clear, Shukaku began to cheer. "I killed him! I killed him!" His body crashed into the ground. Seconds later, though, Gamabunta emerged from the crater, complaining how much that last attack hurt him.

"Even I won't last long if I get hit by one more of those things!"

"What? Then what should we do?!" Naruto yelled while holding on for his lives.

"I've got it!" Ino answered. "We have to wake him up! Waking Gaara up will suppress Shukaku's power. It'll be as if he never fell asleep."

"Oh, I get it!" Naruto nodded his head.

"Took the words right out of my mouth. I suppose you do know your stuff," Gamabunta said.

"So we're supposed to wake him up! How do we do that?"

"I've got a plan," Ino said. "But Gamabunta-sama will have to hold him still. If my plan fails then it's up to you, Naruto to get him to wake up, got it?"

The blond nodded as Gamabunta dodged another air bullet. He then spat out a liquid bullet. Shukaku only scoffed before moving back, taunting that he wouldn't get hit. The Chief Toad grabbed Shukaku's shoulders, but his grip didn't last long, so he was forced to retreat. "My plan won't work if you don't have a good grasp on him!" Ino stated the obvious.

"You stupid girl…! Does it look like I have fangs or claws? I can't hang on to him for more than a second as I am!" Gamabunta turned and landed. "I'm going to have to transform into something that does… But I'm not good at transforming."

"Wha…?!"

"I'm going to need you to think of the form and make the seals!"

"I can't do something like that if my plan's going to work! Naruto, you'll have to do it!"

"Huh?!" Naruto sounded confused.

"It's called a Transformation Combo!"

Naruto nodded his head, and then created a hand sign. Gamabunta told him to think of something with claws and fangs. Before Naruto could think of something, the Chief Toad charged toward his adversary. The blond shinobi began to panic and chant 'fangs and claws' over and over again. Getting annoyed, Ino yelled obscenities at him. Finally, thinking of the transformation, Naruto concentrated with all his might. "TRANSFORM!" Both Gamabunta and Naruto shouted in unison. Smoke completely covered their altered form. Shukaku leaned forward in curiosity.

An orange, clawed hand shot out of the smoke.

Ino groaned a bit before opening her eyes. Even though she wasn't apart of the Transformation Combo, she still felt the intense chakra that was being concentrated from both Naruto and Gamabunta. Her eyesight was slightly blurry, but her sense of touch was perfectly fine. Her eyes grew wide. _"Fur…?!"_ She felt the softness of the red fur beneath her. _"He did it! Wait… Red?!" _The blond kunoichi rubbed her eyes and looked down. She stifled a scream when she realized what she was riding on. She knew the story. It was the only bedtime story she would pay attention to when she was younger. Her father had described it in great detail. _"This is… Kyuubi..."_

Gamabunta, in the form of the Nine-Tailed Fox, raced toward Shukaku. The One-Tailed beast wasn't making it easy to get to him, though. He shot off air bullet after air bullet, intending to kill. _"This is harder than I thought! Naruto, forget the girl's plan!"_

"_Eh?"_

"_We won't have time for that! As soon as I'm close enough, you punch the kid to wake him up!"_

"_But Ino's gonna be mad!"_

"_I don't care—just do it! Get ready!"_

A couple of the tails grabbed a hold of some trees. Gamabunta then jumped up. Just like he expected, Shukaku discharged another air bullet. Gamabunta launched the trees in front of him so that would take the damage. With nothing in his way, the nine-tailed fox descended upon Shukaku. He bit and pierced the skin of Shukaku's body with his fangs and claws. Once he thought he had a good grip, the transformation jutsu ended. Naruto jumped off the head of Gamabunta and headed toward Gaara's sleeping body. "Naruto, wait…!" Ino called out, but the blond was ignored.

"Rise and _shine_!" Naruto's fist made contact with Gaara's face. Blood spewed from the Sand shinobi's mouth. He groaned and Naruto grinned. "How's _that_?"

"That was-"

"Naruto, you idiot!" Ino screamed, interrupting the Chief Toad. "That wasn't part of the plan!"

"**AWW! THAT'S JUST GREAT! I WAS JUST LET OUT!"** Shukaku's eyes changed to a duller color as he wailed out how unfair the situation was.

Even though, they succeeded in waking up the Sand ninja, he still had some strength left. The giant form pushed Gamabunta back. Gaara's eyes snapped open in anger. Naruto was just a few feet away from him. The blond shinobi ran that him, hoping to finish him off. Sea green eyes glared at the oncoming shinobi. Gaara growled, and then trapped Naruto where he stood using the sand. Sand projectiles shot toward Naruto. "I'll destroy you!"

"Help him out, pops!" Gamakichi exclaimed.

Gamabunta's tongue wrapped around Naruto's body; it protected him from the sand. Ino watched as the tongue fell away and went back into the toad's mouth. She was a bit miffed that the two did not try to go through with her plan. _"But now is the best time!"_ The blond kunoichi jumped from Gamabunta's head. She ran up the beast body, heading toward Gaara. What she was about to do was reckless, but she had no other choice. Her eyes met his. She gritted her teeth. She knew she had only few seconds before she would be caught like Naruto. Since Gaara was pretty much immobile where he was, this should get him easily. "**Ninja Art**-" The Yamanaka jumped up, unintentionally bumping into Naruto. She had almost lost her concentration, but willed herself not to lose focus. "**Mind Transfer Jutsu**!"

Down below, watching it all, Sasuke and Mayu gapped at the scene above them. "What…? What just happened?" Mayu rubbed her eyes. "What did Ino just do?"

"I have no idea… but every just stopped moving. What could that girl be thinking? She shouldn't have left us, anyway!" The two were silent for a moment. They balled up their fists.

"Not yet…" she murmured.

"Not yet… I know…"

--

Ino slowly opened her eyes. "It feels like I'm floating… That's never happened before." Now fully alert, the kunoichi looked around. She was surprised to see Naruto floating beside her. "Naruto?! What are you doing here?!" She was even more surprised when Naruto's eyes snapped open. He looked her way in confusion.

"Ino…? What's going on?" He looked around. "I was just looking at Gaara."

"Damn, did I mess up the jutsu and went into Naruto's body instead?" Ino bit her lip. Meanwhile, Naruto was trying to get her attention. "What the hell do you want?!"

"… Where are we?"

It was at this time that Ino realized they weren't floating anymore. They seemed to be standing on solid ground. The area, however, was still dark. It was bizarre that she could see Naruto clearly and yet nothing else. She knitted her eyebrows together. "I'm… not sure." Naruto suddenly turned his head.

"What's that?" he asked, pointing. Ino turned her eyes to where his finger was pointing. "Wait a minute…! That's Gaara… isn't it?" He sounded unsure. What he was seeing looked similar to Gaara, yet he was so much smaller—like a younger version of who he had been fighting. "He's just a cute kid." Naruto felt Ino's eyes on him. She was giving him a weird look. He frantically tried to amend what he said. "I me-mean that kids are us-usually cu-cute, right? I-I-I wasn't the only one thinking it!" Ino rolled her eyes, and then turned her gaze back to the younger version of Gaara.

He seemed to have appeared out of nowhere. There was not an entrance or an exit, so he must have just appeared. This younger version of Gaara was holding a small teddy bear under his arm. He held it close to him tightly as he stared. That's all he was doing. He was only staring at the two blonds. He looked confused, but then his face became passive. He turned and began walking away, not making a sound.

The two blonds only stared after his departing form. Naruto shook his head. "I don't know what's going on-"

"Like you ever do." Ino's comment was ignored.

"-But I think we should follow him." The blond shinobi moved forward. It took a moment before the kunoichi did the same.

She was still unsure of the situation. She had completed the transfer—she knew she did. The feeling was the same. She had felt her chakra enter Gaara. That's what she felt each time she performed her family's jutsu. Ino gave the younger Gaara's back a suspicious look. There was no doubt about it—they were inside of his mind. But why was Naruto here? Why was this little Gaara here? At the very least, she expected to encounter Shukaku again. _"Something's definitely wrong. Maybe I did mess up the jutsu."_

The two blonds suddenly found themselves in a different environment. They were still walking behind Gaara, but they seemed to be somewhere. It looked similar a home in the Leaf Village, but the difference was obvious. It looked darker and slightly fuzzy. Also, there seemed to be a sandstorm raging outside of the circular window. "What is this?" Naruto looked around, taking in his new surroundings. The younger Gaara halted, forcing the two older blonds to stop as well. They were in a room. "Hey, why'd he stop?" He did not continue walking, but the slight movement of his head indicated that he was looking at something ahead of him.

Naruto and Ino moved closer to see what the hold up was. They blinked. On a table was a picture of a woman. She had warm-looking eyes. Her smile, although small, was also warm. She had short brown hair. "Who's that?" Ino questioned, yet her question went unanswered by the younger Gaara. Naruto moved closer.

"She's pretty," he said.

The door creaked open, causing the two blonds to turn. In walked another young Gaara. "_Eh_…!?" Ino pointed a finger. "What's going on?" The new arrival walked toward her and Naruto, but his eyes weren't focused on them. To their astonishment, he walked right through them, as well as the other Gaara. Ino turned with wide eyes. "This can't be… Is this a memory?"

She watched the first Gaara stare at the second one. The second Gaara was gazing at the picture of the woman with a slight longing look. He suddenly pulled out a knife and stabbed himself. She gasped, as did Naruto. She then realized that the sand protected him. "Oh, of course it would," Naruto murmured. "I forgot."

_It doesn't matter what I do. The sand just gets in the way._

_Gaara…_

The second Gaara jumped and turned. The two blonds did the same. Standing near the door was an older person. "Hey! It's that woman!" Naruto exclaimed. Ino whacked him over the head.

"You idiot! That's a man! Can't you tell the difference? They're probably related, dumbass!" The blond kunoichi folded her arms as Naruto rubbed his abused head. Ino focused on the conversation.

_Yashamaru…_

Ino's eyes expanded. _"Yashamaru…? That name… Both Gaara and Sakura said that name before."_ She narrowed her eyes. _"Come to think of it, they both seemed to hate the name." _Gaara had called him a liar, and Sakura seemed to despise the fact that she was compared to him. _"Who is this guy?"_ The man had walked toward the second Gaara with a smile on his face. They had been talking for awhile now. She had missed a bit of the conversation.

_Do you not like me—like the others?_

Naruto blinked in confusion. He could no longer hear what this Yashamaru guy was saying. Yes, he saw his lips moving but nothing came out. He looked at the second Gaara. He had looked so sad. The same lonely and sad look he had seen whenever he looked into a mirror. Gaara, however, had suddenly smiled. _"Is this person… like Iruka-sensei?"_ He shifted his eyes back and forth between the two. He couldn't hear the second Gaara's voice anymore, either. Maybe Gaara did have someone—but if that's true, why'd he turn out so differently. Naruto's blue eyes found their way to the first Gaara. He was holding onto his teddy bear with both arms now. There was a frown on his face as he watched the man known as Yashamaru.

_I know I'm not bleeding, but recently I felt a lot of pain here._

Naruto watched the second Gaara place a hand over his heart. The blond unconsciously did the same. He had felt it to. There was no one, and so there was pain. "Gaara…" he murmured, lowering his eyelids. "We really are the same, aren't we?"

_There's only one thing that can heal the heart. It's love, Gaara._

_Love…?_

_That's right._

The blond shinobi nodded in agreement. Until he met Iruka that pain never left his heart. He finally felt like he belonged when Iruka became his friend. When Iruka became one of his precious people, he had taken a step out of darkness. He had begun to change for the better with the help of love. This Yashamaru guy really knew what he was talking about.

The scene suddenly changed. The three of them were now outside. It was night. Ino looked around in confusion. "This is weird…" Naruto nodded at her comment. He, Ino, and the younger Gaara were standing outside of a house. It was a different looking house from the ones in the Leaf Village. "This must be… the Sand Village. We're probably in Gaara's memories."

"But how did we get here? I didn't know your jutsu could do that."

"It can't… It shouldn't be able to. I guess we're just going to be on this ride. Naruto, don't do anything stupid."

"What the heck does that supposed to mean?!" The angry blond pointed a finger while glaring at his comrade with white comical eyes.

Face-paced footsteps were suddenly heard. The two blonds turned to see a second Gaara running with a bag in his hands. He looked very hopeful, Ino noted as he passed the three. The first watched as his counterpart move up the stairs to a door. He knocked several times before someone came to the door. It was a kid around his age. "Oh, I get it. He wants to give that kid ointment. How nice of him…"

_Sorry about earlier—I know it must've hurt. I have some medicine if you-_

_Get out of here! _

Ino's mouth dropped open in shock. That kid had just slammed the door in Gaara's face. That brat even had the nerve to call Gaara a freak! "WHAT THE HELL?!" Naruto had to pull the kunoichi back. "After he had made such an innocent and sweet gesture, that twerp goes and does that?! I'm gonna kill-"

"Hey, hey…! Calm down, Ino! You can't do anything!"

"The hell I can't! Let me go, Naruto!"

"But that's how it goes…" Ino stopped her struggling. Naruto's whisper was surprising. Before she could question it, though, the sound of a bag dropping caught her attention.

She shrugged Naruto off and looked toward the second Gaara. He looked completely devastated. Ino frowned, seeing such an expression. Not even Sakura looked that way. When the girl tried to be friendly towards others, they usually returned her gestures with friendly smiles. It wasn't the same for Gaara. Ino touched her shoulder and looked away. "Why… Why are we being showed this? I feel like crying…"

The scene changed again, taking the three to yet another place. This time, they were on a roof. It was still night. "Where are we now?" Naruto asked. Of course the younger version of Gaara didn't answer. He hadn't said a word since they encountered. He, instead, turned his head. The two blonds looked in that direction.

_Wh-Who are you…? What do you want?!_

Two pair of blue eyes grew wide. What they were seeing was the second Gaara. He looked scared and confused. Near him was the body of a ninja. Blood nearly covered him. "What happened?" Ino shifted her eyes from the second Gaara to the masked ninja. The second Gaara slowly moved towards the masked ninja. He hesitantly grabbed the mask, and then pulled it away. "No… No way…" Ino couldn't help but whisper. The cloth dropped from the second Gaara's hand.

"What is this?! Isn't that that Yashamaru guy?" Naruto shouted. The second Gaara suddenly grabbed his heart and screamed out loud.

Ino shook her head rapidly. "It can't be!" She went over to the first Gaara, grabbed his shoulders, and then turned him around to face her. She dropped to her knees. "Tell me that it's not what I think it is!" The first Gaara merely looked down. "No way… Yashamaru betrayed you." Naruto gapped at Ino's statement.

"No wonder…" The blond shinobi grind his teeth together. _"No wonder he's the way he is. His Iruka-sensei tried to kill him." _The world around the three suddenly went black. Ripples were underneath them, and yet they could not feel water. The younger Gaara moved from Ino. He moved a few feet away from her before sitting down. He curled up his knees and wrapped his arms around them. His teddy bear lay against him. _"His darkness was even darker than mine."_

_I was order to kill you by Kazekage-sama—your father._

_My father…?_

Although they could no longer see, they could still hear the voices.

_Why me…? Why would father…?_

… _It became clear that you could not control that sand spirit inside you. So in order to protect the village, your existence had to be dealt with._

_You… You had to obey my father. You didn't have a choice._

_You're wrong… I had a choice._

"NO!" Naruto shouted. He glared at nothing. "This guy—what's the matter with him?! Why would he say that?!"

_Deep in my heart, I hated you, Gaara. I've always hated you._

_You were never loved, Gaara… Never…_

_Please die._

Ino couldn't stop the sob that came from her lips. She managed to stifle the rest of the cry by placing her hand over her mouth, but nothing could stop the tears. _"I can't believe this! I feel even worse than I did before. He was never loved and I took full advantage of that!" _The kunoichi held her face in her hands. _"But what kind of a man would say that to a child? Why would-"_ She slammed her fist into the ground. "Gaara, I'm so sorry! It-It must've broken your heart… into a million pieces! I'm so sorry!" Her shoulders shook as she continued to cry for him.

A hand was placed on her left shoulder. She sniffed, and then looked at Naruto. His blue eyes were on something else. Ino slowly turned her head to see. She gasped. "It's us as kids, right?" Naruto squeezed her shoulder. Ino nodded as she watched younger versions of herself and Naruto move toward the younger Gaara. Younger Ino circled younger Gaara before narrowed her eyes. She put her hands on her hip.

"Gaara…! We came to play with you! Are you just going to mope around?!"

"Yeah, we should go eat some ramen!" younger Naruto chimed in.

Unexpected chuckles came from the older blonds. Younger Gaara looked up with uncertainty in his eyes. Younger Naruto and younger Ino held out their hands to him. "Let's go!" they said in unison. A small smile appeared on Gaara's face. He nodded before taking their hands. The three children then disappeared. Their laughter could be heard even though they weren't seen.

"I think… I think I know what we have to do," Naruto said. Ino nodded as she wiped her eyes.

Like glass, the ground underneath them, shattered. They fell through, not knowing what was coming. All around them was darkness. Their fall slowed down a bit; it was as if they were floating again. Naruto's eyes grew wide. "I see him!" He pointed, directing Ino's attention down. Gaara, the current him, was in a similar position that his younger self was in. "Gaara! Hey, Gaara…!" Naruto called down to him. Slowly the red head looked up. His impassive face cracked a bit. Confused up looked up at the floating blonds. "Hey…!" Naruto's hand reached down. "Let's be friends, okay?"

"What…?"

"Not just us! Sakura wants to be your friend, too!" Ino also extended her hand. "Let's all be friends, Gaara!"

"_Eh_…?" The Sand shinobi stared at the two for a moment. Slowly, he moved his arms upward. He hesitantly reached out to their extended arms. He pulled back a bit. "Friends…?"

"Come on, already!" Naruto moved further down. He grasped Gaara's hand and shook. "Uzumaki Naruto is my name! Let's get along, ne?" Before Gaara could respond, his other hand was captured.

"Yamanaka Ino is _my_ name! As my friend, I will boosts your esteem and create a newer you—just like I did with Sakura!"

"I…" Gaara began.

"_They're here to take you from darkness, Gaara. Go with them—let your heart be healed."_ The voice of Yashamaru echoed in his head. _"Maybe one day your heart will be healed… unlike mine."_ The red-haired shinobi slowly nodded. The two blonds grinned before pulling him. They succeeded in lifting him off the ground.

Gaara took his first steps out of the shadows, and into radiance.

--

Sasuke and Mayu's eyes widen in surprise. The giant form of Shukaku suddenly cracked. Cracks and chips appeared all over the giant mass before crumbling and returning to sand. "Did… Did something bring happen the moment I blinked?" Mayu asked, confused.

"I didn't blink at all, and nothing big happened. It just started falling apart."

"They're… falling… Shouldn't we help?"

Suddenly, Gamabunta disappeared in a massive puff of smoke. The force of his disappearance was enough to move the bodies of the three falling ninja away from harm. They instead landed on the tops of trees. "Let's go!" Sasuke jumped up, not waiting for his teammate to follow. She nodded, and then followed after.

Naruto panted heavily as he stared at Gaara. Ino was doing the same. Although, the three were standing, they no longer had enough chakra to keep going for long. All three of them were dirty, sweating, and tired. "We're not so different—you and I." Naruto grinned. "You just needed someone—just like me. But you hurt so many of my friends. I'm not forgiving you just yet." Ino wearily glanced at Naruto before turning back to Gaara.

"He's right…" she panted. "I'm not going to be satisfied just because…" The sand ninja's eyes grew. Gamabunta's giant knife popped out of the world. The two blonds left from the top of the tree they were perched on.

"One more punch oughta do it!" They reared their fist back. Gaara braced himself for the attack, and yet he didn't bring his arms up. He squeezed his eyes shut, waiting for the two knockout punches.

He heard them land on top of the tree he was on. He waited for the strong impact. It never came. Instead, he felt their knuckles against his cheeks. It was soft—merely a tap. He opened in his in surprise. The two blonds leaned on him. "There…" Ino panted with a smile.

"Now we're even." Naruto closed his eyes. A smile was also on his face. The two blond ninja fell unconscious, causing their entire weight to be place against Gaara. Not expecting this, he fell back and headed towards the ground. He didn't mind.

"_These people…"_ Gaara closed his eyes. _"These people are…"_

He felt something underneath him. Two pair of arms, he thought. The weight of the two blonds disappeared. He didn't bother to open his eyes yet. There was no need. He had been defeated. "Gaara-kun…?" That voice… The Sand ninja forced his eyes open. The sunlight blinded him for a moment. "You're okay, aren't you?" Green eyes stared back at him.

"… Sa… Mayu… chan…" The Leaf kunoichi looked shocked, and then she smiled.

"You… You finally remembered." The teen placed his head in her lap. "That was something else, Gaara-kun. Truly incredible… But now that it's over, please don't hurt my friends anymore. I don't want any of you to die."

"Why… How did he… How did he get so strong?"

Mayu looked up in thought. "His strength comes from the bonds he shares with the people he wants to protect." Gaara turned his head. He saw the Uchiha checking Naruto over. "That's what truly makes a person strong. Never backing down because someone you love is in danger—that's where his power came from. He had to stop you at all costs, and so he grew stronger as the battle continued. Understand that his team rescued him from the dark. He was no longer lonely because of Sasuke, Kakashi-sensei, and I. He grew to love us, and I'm sure we grew to love him as well. And because of this love, we are strong. With friends, with love… you, too, can have this strength, but until then, Naruto is stronger."

"Mayu, that's enough. Don't forget that he's still the enemy." Uchiha Sasuke walked over and narrowed his eyes. The kunoichi bowed her head.

"Enemy or not, it's over." Sasuke blinked. "Our mission is complete. We succeeded in stopping Gaara-kun from doing anything dangerous and we got Ino back. It's over. We don't have to fight anymore." The Uchiha stared at his teammate for a moment. He opened his mouth.

"Don't smile like that with the cursed mark. You look creepy." Mayu's eye twitched.

"Bird brain."

"Cocoon."

This was the last thing Gaara heard before he lost consciousness.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Finished May 16, 2009

Well, well, well… Would you look at how many pages this is? Yes, it's thirty pages long. I didn't think it would be this long, but it's finally done. Yeah, a lot of different stuff happened in this chapter. It's definitely not like the original, am I right? Wasn't the Sand siblings supposed to come pick up their brother at the end? Well, as you can see, that didn't happen. How could this effect the rest of the story. Find out… sometime during the progress of this story.

I wanted to add another fight scene—Neji and Hinata VS Kidomaru—but I got some really weird advice from this guy, so I was afraid to add it. Turns out it was a good idea. If I had put it in, this chapter would exceed maybe forty pages.

Next time: _We're Not O-Fucking-Kay_!

I'm looking forward to your amazing reviews!


	17. We're Not OFuckingKay!

Deep inside ANBU headquarters, two enemy ninja were chained. One ninja was off the ground, attached to a chain that hung from the ceiling. The other ninja sat with his wrists chained together, out in front of him. He stared down at the floor in silence. Not once had he looked up at the other prisoner. Not once had he made a noise. The sound of his chains was the only indication that he was even alive. The ninja, hanging, in the middle of the room sent several glares his way, but still he had not moved.

The room itself was dark, except from the red light that seemed to be coming from the very floor. This dim red light had to be some form of torture because it was doing a very good job at pissing the hanging ninja off. Spread out in the room were several ANBU operatives, watching the prisoners, waiting for any kind of action to escape. The two captives had been in the room for hours now. _"I fucking wish something would happen already!"_ The kunoichi had gotten careless and was caught right before she made it to the perimeter of the village. She had been knocked unconscious. When she had awakened, she was here, along with the other prisoner. She wasn't sure how long he had been there, but she for one, was getting tired of waiting.

Just as she was about to open her mouth and let out a string of curses, normal, artificial light enveloped the room. She couldn't tell where it came from, but she assumed there was a door. After hours of hanging there, she was much too exhausted to try to turn her head. She doubted that she even could. Though, something had happened, the other prisoner had yet to lift his head. The kunoichi heard footsteps coming toward her, but she didn't open her eyes. What was the point? It was probably her executioner. "State your name for the leader of the Leaf village!"

The kunoichi slowly opened her eyes. Below her were three people. The man in the middle was old, and she recognized him by the attire he wore. He was the Kage of the Leaf. On his face, he wore an impassive expression. The other two, on either side of him, were apart of ANBU. "Tayuya of the Sound Four…" The teen almost scoffed. Sound Four…? There was no more Found Four. It was just her. There was no doubt that Kidomaru had been killed by those two Hyuga. Out of all the opponents he could have fought, it was those two, who seemed to have the greatest advantage against him.

"Do you know why you're here?"

"Stop beating around the fucking bush, you old fart, and just tell m-" A fist came out of nowhere and punched her across the face. An angry voice shouted to her, telling her to 'some some respect.' Tayuya moved her jaw. Her tongue moved inside her mouth, searching for broken teeth. Luckily, she did not find any. Her brown eyes glared down at the ANBU, not sure which had hit her. She spit the blood from her mouth. The Hokage stood back. "No," she replied sarcastically. "I don't know why. Care to enlighten me?"

"Tayuya, you were ordered to come into the village, seek out a kunoichi, capture her, and kill anyone that got in your way. Am I correct?" The old leader did not stop looking her in the eyes. Tayuya only nodded. If she became foul-mouth again, she could get hit again. The last one hurt like hell. "You must be wondering why you weren't killed on site."

"Let me guess." Despite her current predicament, a smirk appeared on her face. "It's because I was so close to Orochimaru, right? You assume I know where all his bases are. You assume that I know all about his research and what he could be planning." Being Orochimaru's official body guard did have its good points. It kept her alive. Right now, it was all that matter.

"No, that is not the reason." The old man's response caused the smirk to drop. "We already have someone who knows just as much as you. The true reason is that Tsuchi Kin told us that you would be valuable." Tayuya mouthed the girl's name. "She told us that you and she are the same. You and she… were only loyal to Orochimaru because you feared him. Is that true?" The kunoichi nodded. "If that is the case, I will to propose a deal. Work for the Leaf village, become loyal to the Leaf village, and you will be kept alive. When it comes to mere children, I am lenient. Perhaps, it is laughable, but I do not see the sense of taking a child's life. What do you say?"

"No fucking way!"

The Hokage narrowed his eyes. "Very well... It is unfortunate." He turned his head to the ANBU on his right. "Take her away and execute her." The ANBU operative nodded and took a step forward.

"Wait…!" Tayuya began to panic. Her confidence was quickly leaving her. "You just said you were fucking lenient!" She had thought she could negotiate with this merciful fool. That was what she was taught. A man, who was compassionate, was a man that was a fool. She was taught that a man like that could easily be manipulated. She used to think she was invincible. As she grew stronger, she believed that she was not afraid of death.

"I am lenient, so unlike your comrades, who were ultimately slaughtered, you will be injected with poison. No pain, no torture—a clean death awaits you." The old man turned his back on her.

"Wait…" Tayuya absolutely hated the way her voice trembled. "Wait…" she repeated. She didn't want to die. She was as afraid of death as the next person. She was strong, yet not invincible. There were other far stronger. The kunoichi remembered those callous green eyes. "That's… not what I meant. Orochimaru's still out there somewhere, isn't he?" The Hokage did not speak. He didn't have to. She noticed the way his shoulders tensed. "Once he finds out that I've defected and joined his enemy, he'll send wave after wave of ninja to bring me back, so he can personally torture and kill me. If you knew what he plans to do with Kin, you'd be scared shitless to betray him, too."

"Orochimaru is no longer your concern." Tayuya lifted her head. The Hokage still had his back to her. "I repeat: do we have a deal?" It was quiet for a few tense moments. Tayuya couldn't even hear the rattling of her chain anymore. The old leader turned his head slightly to look at her out of the corner of his eye. It was at that moment she realized that this man was no fool. He could not be manipulated easily. Like Orochimaru, he was revered. But unlike Orochimaru, he was not feared. No, the reason his subordinates fought and died for him was not out of terror. It was out of respect and love.

Tayuya scowled when the thought crossed her mind. She never believed in that mushy stuff. All she knew was fear. It was something Orochimaru drilled into her head. It was either fear or being feared—that's what the world was all about, according to the Snake Sanin. The kunoichi pursed her lips together. She didn't want to die, yet she didn't want to be tortured and killed either. But then again, Kin had survived this whole time. Had they been protecting her all this time? "I…" Tayuya squeezed her eyes shut. She bit her lip. "I don't want to die."

"Do you swear loyalty to the Leaf?" Apparently, saying she wanted to live wasn't a good enough answer.

"… Fine—fucking fine!"

The Hokage nodded his head. "Good," he said, allowing his shoulders to relax. "Release her." Instantly the chains around her wrist snapped opened. The kunoichi fell to the ground. Because the feeling was gone in her legs, she landed on her knees. Tayuya murmured a few curse words before becoming quiet. She placed her hands on the ground and bowed low. "There's no need for that." She slowly lifted her head. "However, I do not trust you. Until you can prove your loyalty to this village, you will be under constant surveillance. You will have a tracking device on you at all times. You will not leave the village. You will be allowed to train, but if your chakra level gets any higher than what I permit, you will be shot with a tranquilizer, understand?"

Tayuya gritted her teeth. That meant she couldn't use her curse mark at all. But she nodded. There was nothing she could do. His orders—she would have to follow them. If she wanted to live to see the light of another day, she would do ask he says. "I fully understand your orders… Hokage-sama." The leader of the Leaf village turned his head to the two ANBU, gesturing toward Tayuya. The two nodded, and then moved to help up the teen.

"You will be treated. A number of bones in your arm were cracked. Also the wound on your shoulder might be infected." The two ANBU carried her toward the door. "You and Kin are the only ex-Sound affiliates who are not killed. Be happy that you survived this day." Tayuya did not respond to his words. The three exited the room.

Sarutobi waited a moment before releasing a sigh of relief. He had done quite the acting job just now. Had that girl been anymore stubborn, he would have had to sentence her to death. It was something he had not wanted to do. He turned his attention to the next prisoner. He had not made a sound since he had become conscious, according to the ANBU watching him. He had been the Sand's secret weapon, apparently. Because of what was inside this young boy, his village—his own father—had turned him into a living weapon. He was glad that Naruto hadn't gone through something like that. Speaking of which, according to an eyewitness, it was the blond genin that had helped to stop the enemy. That very thought had made him swell up with pride. Minato would have been proud.

Sarutobi shook his head. He cleared his throat to get the prisoner's attention. The red-haired shinobi did not lift his head. "I'm going to make this quick, Gaara. You are alive because you happen to be the son of the Kazekage. Even though that man has been killed, you still have that status. But because of that status, I can not possibly give you the same proposal as that girl. You are-"

"I…" The prisoner moved. He lifted his head a fraction. Sarutobi still could not see his eyes. "I am not loyal to that village." The Hokage raised an eyebrow. That was something he had not been expecting. "Those people… that village… I am not loyal to them. How could I be loyal to them when they were not loyal to me?"

"Are you… denouncing your allegiance to the Sand village? Are you throwing away where you came from—your home?"

"That place was never my home."

"Then… surely, I can give you the same proposal?"

"I am not loyal to the Leaf either."

"You do realize that this makes things more difficult for you, don't you, Gaara?" The Hokage frowned as he looked at the boy. The boy had not really done anything in regards of treason—since he said that he wasn't loyal to the Sand. However, that did not excuse the fact that his intention was to destroy the Leaf village. The old man sighed again. "You have loyalty to no one then?"

"… While in this village… I think I did become loyal to something." Sea green eyes finally looked up. "I became loyal to that thing called… friendship. To fight only for you—to love only yourself, I learned from him that that is something that one should not live by. It wasn't what makes one stronger." A whimsical expression crossed his face for a brief moment. "I am… loyal to it—this friendship.

"And who do you have friendship with?"

"… Uzumaki Naruto…" The Hokage's eyes grew wide in surprise. How… appropriate, he thought. "Ya-Yamanaka Ino… and… M-Mayu-chan."

Sarutobi had to mask his astonishment. That girl had revealed herself to him. Even though, it was not her body. That girl just as impulsive as her grandmother had been. The Hokage shook his head. "You are loyal to those three?" A nod was sent his way. "Well then… There are things you need to know about Uzumaki Naruto and Ishikari Mayu." Gaara looked at the leader with inquiring eyes. The Hokage walked forward, taking a key out of his robes. He bent down and unlocked the shackles. They fell to the floor with a _clank_. "Come with me, and I'll explain." He stood, and then began to walk away. Gaara watched him go. It wasn't until the old man looked back did he stand. "Come along, Gaara." Slowly, the red head nodded before following after the Leaf village's leader.

--

The door opened, causing Sasuke to turn his head. He stood up as he watched his teammate close the door behind her. She did not say a word. She slowly walked toward him in silence. She waited a moment before pushing him out of the way and sitting in his chair. Sasuke made a face, but otherwise did not do a thing. Her green eyes were on her other teammate, who had yet to waken. "Sorry I'm late, Sasuke," she finally broke the silence. The Uchiha sighed before grabbing another stool.

"You could've gotten your own seat, Mayu." He sat down beside her. For awhile, the two sat in silence. Their eyes continued to watch their unconscious teammate. "The nurses said that he woke up for a moment during his treatment, so that had to sedate him. They said he should be up soon." The kunoichi sighed heavily as she continued to stare down at the blond.

"He should be up right _now_!" She began to poke the blond shinobi. "Oi… Oi, Naruto…! Wake up already!" Sasuke swatted her hand away. "But I don't like waiting!"

"Stop being impatient, Mayu. He'll wake up whenever the sedative wears off." The Uchiha crossed his arms and closed his eyes, signaling the end of the discussion. The two sat in silence for a few minutes more. Mayu then started to get fidgety. Sensing this, Sasuke sighed. "Be patient! It's only a matter of time." He knew that it was also a matter of time before his teammate exploded. She was the type of person who did not like to be kept waiting in silence. It was one of her peeves. Sasuke opened his eyes and looked to his right. His teammate had disappeared from her seat.

She was standing on the other side of Naruto's hospital bed. The Uchiha released another sigh. It was probably too late to stop whatever she was planning—not that he would. He was a bit curious as to what she would do to wake Naruto up. Mayu moved closer to the blond. The cautious way she moved almost made Sasuke roll his eyes. She cupped a hand over her mouth and whispered into Naruto's ear. "Oi, Naruto…! Sasuke plans to steal your first kiss right now!" Sasuke's eyes grew wide as the blond shinobi's body sprang to life.

"WHAT?! I KNEW IT!" A finger was pointed in Sasuke's direction. "I KNEW YOU WANTED MY LIPS ALL THIS TIME!"

"WHAT?!" Sasuke stood up, knocking his stool over. "What do you mean you knew, idiot? I'm not gay, and I sure hell don't want _your_ lips! I'd rather kiss that freak Orochimaru than you!" The Uchiha shuddered, getting a mental image from his own statement.

"Oh, I just bet you would!"

By this time, Mayu had a hand over her mouth, trying to desperately to stifle her laughter. That only lasted a few seconds. Her laughter was so great that it forced her hand from her mouth. She laughed so loud that her teammates stopped their bickering and turned to her. She pointed a finger and held her stomach because of the pain. She breathed in deeply, trying to catch her breath, while still laughing at them. Sasuke's eyebrow twitched. "Keep laughing like that and you'll pass out." Slowly, her laughter began to die down. She wiped a tear from her eye.

"Seriously, you guys are just so predictable now." She gave them a silly grin. Sasuke scoffed while Naruto looked confused. He looked around as if just noticing his surroundings. He opened his mouth to ask a question, but Mayu interrupted before he could speak. "You're in the hospital, Naruto. It's morning now." The blond shinobi blinked, and then looked down at his lap. For a moment, neither genin spoke.

Naruto lifted his head, showing his narrowed eyes. His blue eyes weren't directed at either one of his teammate, though. "So what happened?" he asked. "If I'm in the hospital, then that means it's over, right?" Mayu nodded. "So then what's the outcome?" Sasuke crossed his arms again.

"Apparently," he began. "Both the Sound and Sand retreated. Sound ninja were already in the village, but they were taken care of. Sand ninja, besides the ones already in the village, didn't reach the Leaf. Our forces had stopped them from reaching the front gate. Realizing that they were fighting a losing battle, they gave up and ran away—there were more of us than them. After losing their allies, the Sound also gave up and ran. Any enemy caught inside the village was either killed, or they escaped. The village could have been in ruins if it hadn't been for first line of defense."

Blue eyes went wide. Naruto turned to Sasuke with a look of fear. "Then what about Gaara?! What happened to him?!" The blond shook his teammate to get an answer out of him. Sasuke pushed him away and dusted off his clothes. "Sasuke…!"

"Gaara-kun was the exception, I think." Mayu's voice made Naruto turn to her. "Because he is the son of the Sand's leader, then he wasn't killed. He's our prisoner of war."

"What happens to prisoners of war?"

"They're used as bargaining chips," Sasuke stated. "Nothing will actually happen to Gaara until our village gets in touch with the Sand village."

Naruto sat back with a sigh. "That's a relief! Me and Ino promised to be his friend. I definitely don't wanna go back on my word!" The blond missed the look exchanged between his teammates. "Ino's okay, too, right? And everyone else?" His female teammate nodded again. She smiled lightly, telling him that no one was gravely injured in their age group. She told him that they were scattered somewhere in the hospital. "That's good! We should visit them later."

Mayu sat on the bed with her back facing her teammates. She frowned. She knew that she had to tell them sooner than she thought. She would have rather done it much later, but she realized that she was running out of time. She may not ever get another chance to tell them. "Naruto… Sasuke…" The two shinobi turned their eyes to her. She felt her eyes on them. "Remember when I told you that I wanted the three of us to talk?" She chuckled humorlessly. "Well, I think now is a good time—the best time for us to talk."

"_Ah_, when you tell us everything, right?" Naruto asked.

Mayu chuckled again. She turned her body. Now, she was sitting cross-legged at the end of the bed. She nodded her head to answer his question. The kunoichi grinned as she rocked back forth. "I… I wonder where I should start!" Slowly, the grin faded from her face. She bowed her head. "I guess I should start by telling you… my real name." Mayu noticed that Naruto had opened his mouth. He also had a confused look in his eyes. "Please, Naruto… let me talk until I'm done. Otherwise, I might not tell you everything." The blond shut his mouth and nodded. "My real name is Ishikari Mayu. Before the three of us became a team, my mind transferred into this body. I didn't really care about why it happened. I was just too excited. I thought that I would be a ninja for a day. I didn't really think of the consequences of my actions in this body. I figured that I'd end up telling someone sooner or later, but for that moment, I was Haruno Sakura, someone who had changed from a girl to a kunoichi overnight." Mayu smiled at the memories. "Then without warning, I started really care a lot about my—no, Haruno Sakura's team. I didn't want to give you guys up so soon." She frowned and turned her eyes away. "It was selfish of me. Even now, I don't want to tell you all this because of what _could_ happen…"

Green eyes looked down. She scratched her cheek. "_Ah_, anyway, the chuunin exams came, and because of that, we grew even closer as a team. It amazed me. I would have risked my life for you guys. I would have risked it all to save either one of you. I started seeing you two as real people. Because of you two—this team—I had almost forgotten my other life. I had almost become Haruno Sakura—almost made her life my own. Then my dream fell apart. I realized the truth." Mayu swallowed hard. "The Hokage made me remember who I was during the one month break of the chuunin exam. During those minutes of hell, I got back all of my memories. Those memories I got back made me realize who I truly was and how I am in this body right now. Ishikari Mayu…" The kunoichi smiled small. "Ishikari clan was a clan of the Leaf village. Ishikari Mayu of the Leaf village is my true status."

"Wait a minute. There is no such thing as an Ishikari clan of the Leaf." Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "And besides that fact… you said something about a village called Tok-yo."

"While that wasn't necessarily a lie, it wasn't exactly the truth either. Like I said, I had forgotten my memories—my childhood—so to me, I was from that place." Mayu licked her dry lips. "As for the Ishikari clan—there wasn't a clan called that in this village… as far as you knew. The Ishikari clan was hidden—isolated—from the village. We were kept secret. Back when the First Hokage was establishing our village, my clan was there. But he thought it was best if no one found out about our ability because at the time, numerous wars were going on. Our clan head agreed, and our clan was only used as a last resort. You see, not only could we inhabit the body of another, we also had the ability to kill the enemy while we were inside their bodies, without causing our own body harm like the Yamanaka clan. Generation after generation, only the village leaders knew of our existence. That all changed about six years ago… Because of being isolated, a little girl was so lonely. She didn't have friends—all she had was her family. She didn't even siblings to play with. She would train because that was all she could do to stop from being bored. But because of her personality, training soon became a bore as well. Because of her careless mistake—because she had ventured out of her home, an outsider discovered her and her family." Mayu smiled and sighed, remembering. "That girl didn't care about the effects of allowing an outsider into her home. All she knew was that she had found a friend. The girl's mother knew of her loneliness, so she allowed the outsider to come and go as he pleased. For years, the outsider and the girl were friends. They even considered one another as siblings." Her smile dropped. "And then… it happened. The outsider's clan found out where he had been going. I don't know the exact details, but the outsider's clan suddenly initiated an attack on the Ishikari clan. The girl watched as her friend—her brother—killed her father. All around her, her family members—her clan was being murdered. The Ishikari clan was no match for the outsider's clan. In an effort to save the girl, the mother performed a forbidden jutsu." Mayu wiped her eyes. Tears had started falling. She, however, refused to let out any sobs. "This jutsu sent that girl away, and wiped her memories clean, so she wouldn't have to remember that day. Well, that jutsu started to wear off. It hadn't completely faded, so the girl was brought back—without memories—into another body."

"So… that girl… She was you?" Naruto asked, knitting his eyebrows together.

The kunoichi nodded. She nervously played with her fingers. "My mother did it to save me, and to save me from the harsh hand I'd been dealt. My friend-" Another humorless chuckle escaped her lips. "-He seemed to have betrayed his second family. So you see… getting those memories back was hard for me. That is why I acted so differently when the three of us united again." Mayu wiped her face with the palms of her hands. She took several breaths to calm herself down. "Sasuke…!" She caught the Uchiha's attention. He lifted his head. Those dark eyes—they held empathy. "It seems we have more in common than I first thought, don't we?" Sasuke slowly nodded. Green eyes turned to the blond. "Naruto…" His blue eyes met hers. "I'm not really Sakura. I've lied to you this whole time." She bowed her head low. "I understand if you won't forgive me. I understand if you don't want me to be on you your team, anymore." The blond did not give a response. "I see…" Mayu sat up. She gave a fake grin. "I understand… Excuse me!" She moved to get off the bed. Two hands, however, grabbed her wrists, preventing her from moving any further.

She turned her head. Her eyes grew wide in surprise. Not only had Naruto grabbed her, but Sasuke as well. He had reached across the bed to due so. Both of them had their eyes narrowed at her. "What are you talking about?" Naruto yanked her back on the bed. The two genin released her. Mayu looked away as she rubbed her wrist. "Haruno, Ishikari… Sakura-chan, Mayu… It doesn't matter what you call yourself!" The blond curled up his fists. "You have been on this team for awhile! It was you who I grew closer with! The three of us… We fought together, we laughed together, we ate together—that's what we did as a team! Do you really think we would let you just leave?! Is that what your friendship is?! Up to this point, that's all it was to you?!" Mayu bowed her head.

"I don't care what your real name is." Sasuke let out a slow sigh. "Selfish or not, I'm not willing to give either of you up either. We are your teammates. You are our teammate. Like Naruto said, what you call yourself doesn't matter." The Uchiha smirked as he moved onto the bed. He thumbed at Naruto. "Why do you think no one cares that this dobe calls himself the future Hokage?" Naruto turned angry on Sasuke.

"What'd you say?!" he pointed a finger. His blue eyes turned back to Mayu. "And anyway, I knew about it. I mean, I'm not stupid!" Both of his teammates gave him a skeptic look. They then turned to each other with 'yeah right' grins on their faces. This caused Naruto to hit both of them on their heads. "Shut up! I… I mean, I didn't know the details, but I knew Sakura-chan suddenly changed. She, out of nowhere, started being nice to me. I didn't think anything of it, but I just knew that something was different about her. Sasuke, you knew, too, didn't you?" The Uchiha nodded in agreement. "And I'm not an idiot!"

"Sure you aren't," he replied, smirking. Naruto nearly lunged at his teammate.

Mayu laughed at the two as she wiped her nose. "I'm glad." She smiled. "You guys don't know how happy you've made me just now." She sniffed and wiped her nose again.

"Come on…! What are you talking about?" Naruto locked his fingers behind his head. "We're all friends here, right? We'll stick with each other to the very end!" Mayu nodded energetically, grinning. Naruto grinned back.

"Yes…!"

"What a relief." Sasuke smirked. "I was beginning to miss the other idiot of the team."

"What do you mean other idiot?!" Naruto and Mayu shouted in unison.

Sasuke ignored their outbursts. "Well, now that that's cleared up, you can go back to acting like you were." The Uchiha stretched a bit. "Naruto and I trust you. You don't have to hold back in front of your teammates, right?" Mayu stared at him blankly, and then looked away. "What is it?" The kunoichi scratched her cheek again. "What is it now?"

"Um… In that case, I should tell you the rest." The kunoichi smiled nervously, causing Naruto and Sasuke to look at her in confusion. "Sasuke, this… will most definitely get you, personally, upset… It was an Uchiha."

"Eh…?"

"The… outsider was an Uchiha. His clan was Uchiha," Mayu clarified. "Uchiha Itachi was the outsider."

"Uchiha…" Naruto repeated. "That would make he related to Sasuke."

"My brother…?" Sasuke asked. Mayu winced at the tone of his voice, and then nodded. The young Uchiha inhaled sharply. "… I guess… that's more of a reason to find him. I will take revenge for my family, and yours as well." Not wanting to cause a massive conflict at the moment, Mayu kept her mouth shut. She would tell him at a later time.

"Brother…? Revenge…? What are you two talking about?" Naruto was trying his best to keep up with the conversation, but it wasn't really going so well. "This Uchiha Itachi is your brother?" Sasuke nodded his head, and then turned his eyes to the blond shinobi.

"He is the one who annihilated my clan. Apparently, he's responsible for the destruction of Mayu's clan, too." He gave the blond his full attention. "Do you understand?" He narrowed his eyes. "Do you understand why?"

"I don't…" Naruto shook his head. "Never being in that situation, I couldn't possibly understand why you would want to kill this guy. But I know the reason now. I know the reason you can be a jerk sometimes." Sasuke's eyebrow twitched as Mayu stifled a laugh. The Uchiha glared at her, which caused her to look innocent. "Now that I know, though… You better not think you can deal with this on your own!" Sasuke turned his eyes back to Naruto. "I'll help you in anyway that I can—both of you."

Mayu grinned. She brought her hand up and ruffled Naruto's blond hair. "You're such a good guy, Naruto!" The blond tried to remove her hand by turning his head, but she continued to ruffle his hair. "_Ah_, don't be like that, Naruto-kun! I'm just praising your coolness!" She pinched his cheeks and pulled them out of place. "No wonder some pretty girl has her eye on you!" Naruto finally smacked her hands away.

"What do you mean 'some pretty girl'? Someone likes me?" The blond shinobi rubbed his abused cheeks. Mayu waved a hand in front of her face.

"I… I've said too much! I know nothing!"

Sasuke rolled his eyes. His idiotic teammates were now wrestling with each other. Naruto was trying to pry the information out of her while Mayu trying to defend herself. The two were now on the floor. "Oi…! I thought you was hurt, Naruto?" The two paused mid-roll. Naruto blinked, and then a split second later, he was back in bed with the back of his hand pressed dramatically against his forehead.

"Hurry, Saku—I mean, Mayu…! Bring the pretty girl, so she can nurse me back to health. Otherwise… I won't make it!" The kunoichi stood up with her hands on her hips. She gave Naruto a look of disbelief. "Don't be jealous that I've moved on, Mayu!"

"_Huh_…?!"

"Looks like your traits are starting to rub off on him," Sasuke murmured with a flat look.

Mayu plopped down on the bed. She grinned at the Uchiha. "Pretty soon, you're gonna be just like us! Whop whop whop whop whop…!" She gave him spirit fingers. Sasuke only raised an eyebrow at her antics. He promptly denied that it would ever happen. Mayu continued to tease and wave her fingers at her teammate. Sasuke only sighed. Naruto watched their interaction. It seemed that his team was even closer than before. And it was all because they trusted one another enough to let them in. He was glad, yet upset at the same time. His blue eyes were downcast. He continued to listen to his teammates argue. Would he ever feel as close with this dark secret that he was keeping all to himself? His fingers gripped the cover that surrounded him.

"You've got one more time to make that damn noise, Mayu!"

"Hey, you guys…" The blond looked up. He blinked. "… What the hell?" Sasuke had grabbed onto the front of Mayu's shirt and about to punch her with his free hand. The kunoichi had her face scrunched up, bracing herself for the impact. The two looked towards Naruto at the same time. Mayu had one eye open. "I looked away for two seconds, just two seconds!" The Uchiha roughly released the Ishikari. She sat back up and glared at him. "But anyway…" The two looked at him again. "I think there's something you should know about me, too." The three were silent for a moment.

"You know, Naruto, just because we revealed something big to you… doesn't mean you have to do the same," Sasuke commented. "You don't have to tell us if you really don't want to." Naruto swallowed nervously.

"Yeah, yeah…! Besides, anything you say probably won't top what I told you guys!" Mayu puffed out her chest proudly. Sasuke smirked, seeing the door that his teammate had just opened.

"You really shouldn't try to display your lack of chest like that." Mayu's eyebrow twitched, resisting the urge to kick him off the bed. Instead, she glared. "Hey, you opened the door. I just walked in."

"Why you little-"

"Kyuubi." Naruto had successfully stopped an argument. Talks of the demon fox was definitely a sobering matter. "Like Gaara—I'm just like Gaara. I have a demon inside me, too." The blond clutched his abdomen. He waited to hear any sort of reaction from his teammates. There was no way he could look them in the eye, so he listened.

"Yeah…" Mayu was the first to say something. "That definitely, definitely topped mine." She wasn't surprised to hear that information on the count of that she knew it already. However, she was very shocked because he, Naruto, had told them, himself! "Unbelievable…"

"That is unbelievable. According to the stories, the Fourth Hokage killed the Kyuubi." Sasuke narrowed his eyes and looked down. "How could you have it inside you?"

"Like I said, I'm just like Gaara. But the circumstances were different from his." Naruto moved the cover down from his body, and then lifted his shirt. He utilized his chakra, causing the dark, spiral seal to appear. Sasuke's eyes grew wide. "The Kyuubi was sealed into me to save the village on that night." He pushed down his shirt. His blue eyes finally looked up. It was time to face the storm.

The room was enveloped in silence. It was so quiet that Naruto was sure the two could hear his rapidly beating heart. He gulped, uncertain of his teammates' reactions. Would they even want to still be his teammate? After all, most of the villagers despised him for the very fact that he carried the dangerous demon. "You know something…" Naruto winced, and then looked toward the kunoichi. "It really doesn't matter me. Naruto is Naruto, Kyuubi or not." Mayu reached over and pinched his cheek. "If you ask me, this is only another reason why I like you, Naruto. You have the strength to overcome even when the odds are against you. It must have been hard growing up." She grinned. "We all have something in common now. Us orphans with the secret have got to stick together, right?" Naruto hesitantly looked over to the Uchiha.

"But Sasuke-"

A hand slammed down on his head. "You really are an idiot." Sasuke removed his hand. "You really thought we were going to reject you in fear like the villagers?" He scoffed, a smirk playing on his lips. "Sorry to break it to you, but an idiot would never have me shaking in fear." Tears welled up in Naruto's eyes. "Besides, nothing has changed. You're still Naruto. Although, it does explain a lot—like how you have so much stamina."

"Oh and how you seem to get a second wind each time you fight a strong opponent." Mayu looked up in thought as Sasuke nodded in agreement.

"Not to mention the whiskers… I've always wondered about that."

"You.. have? Are you sure you don't want me, Sasuke?"

"That's… too much information, Sasuke."

"Shut up…!"

"You guys…" The two looked toward their blond teammate. He had a big silly grin on his face with tears coming from his eyes. "You guys are the best team I've ever had!"

"We've the only team you've ever had," Mayu pointed out. Sasuke nudged her with his foot and called her a smartass. Naruto moved into position. "Naruto, what are you doing…?"

"I think we should celebrate with a giant group hug!" Sasuke's eyes grew wide, realizing what the blond was up to.

"Naruto, no…! Don't you dare!"

"BANZAI…!" He tackled his teammates into a hug, sending them all to the ground.

--

"Look at all the damage!" Naruto looked all around him as he walked. "They weren't playing around were they?" Sasuke scoffed at the way he sounded.

"Seriously, Naruto… Who plays around in a war?" The Uchiha's voice was caustic. Naruto only stuck his tongue out at his teammate. The two, as well as Mayu and another ninja, were heading toward the Hokage building. Out of the blue, the Third Hokage had ordered that they should go meet with him. There was even an escort. "Still, the damage would've been much worse if the Sand ninja had entered the village. If you think about the damage that _could_ have been done, then you would realize that we are really lucky."

"Hurry," the unnamed ninja turned his head to the trio. "It will be faster if we take this way." He jumped up, expecting the three to follow. Confused, Naruto only looked up and pointed a finger.

"Isn't that the Hokage's window?"

"Are we even allowed to go that way?" Sasuke asked.

"Anko-sensei and I did it before. I suppose the Third doesn't mind." Mayu grabbed her two teammates' hands and jumped up. "Come on, already!"

The three stood behind the man as he opened the window. One by one, they filed into the Hokage's office. Once they were all in, and the window was closed, the chair twirled around to reveal Sarutobi, the leader of the Hidden Leaf village. The four ninja bowed to their leader before moving around his desk to face him. Sarutobi nodded his head. "You may leave," he told the oldest of the four.

"Yes, sir…!" The man bowed again before walking out of the room. He closed the door behind him.

"I want to start by congratulating you on a successful mission." The old leader smiled at the three genin. "Not only did you rescue your fellow comrade, but you also subdued the enemy as well. You should be proud of completing such a mission." Both Sasuke and Mayu bowed again at receiving a compliment from their leader. Naruto, having little respect for authority, spoke outright.

"Old man, speaking of Gaara, what's going to happen to him…?!" His teammates, who were standing on either side of him, were quick to elbow him. "Hey…! Is that any way to treat an injured person?!" His shouts were ignored by the two. The Hokage chuckled.

"Yes, he is one of the reasons that I would like to speak with you." The three stared at their leader. "At the moment, Gaara-san is the only Sand affiliate in the village. However, he told me that he isn't loyal to the Sand."

"_Eh_…? He isn't loyal? What's that mean?" Mayu asked.

"It means that he is not important enough to be kept alive." Naruto and Mayu gapped at their leader, clearly shocked by his words. Before they could protest, Sarutobi continued. "However, it also means that I can offer him something. If he would swear loyalty to the Leaf, then he would be kept alive."

"Well, what did Gaara-kun say?"

"He rejected the proposal."

"No…!" Mayu covered her mouth. "So then Gaara-kun…"

The old man stood up, chuckling. "However, he did say something that truly surprised me." Sarutobi moved in front of the genin. He leaned against the desk and crossed his arms. "It would seem that he is loyal to some." The three gave inquiring looks. "He said that his loyalties lie with Uzumaki Naruto, Yamanaka Ino, and you." His eyes focused on the kunoichi. Mayu pointed to herself in shock. The Hokage nodded. "This friendship that you three have forged with him—it's very admirable of you." A grin appeared on Naruto's face as a smile appeared on Mayu's. "So… since his allegiance lies with you, what do you two think should be done with him?" Their smiles and grins instantly dropped.

"_Eh_…?!"

"_Huh_…?!"

"How fitting." Sasuke smirked.

His two teammates glared at him before turning confused eyes on their leader. Naruto pointed a shaky finger at himself. "Y-Y-Y-You want _us_ to de-de-decide?!" The blond scratched his head. "We can't possibly do that!"

"Naruto is right, Hokage-sama! I know nothing about handing out punishments!" Mayu rapidly shook her head.

"Now is a good time to start, eh?" His eyes turned to Naruto. "Isn't your dream to become Hokage?" The blond shinobi gulped. "Being the strongest ninja, and ruling over a village isn't the only things that a Kage is responsible." His eyes turned to Mayu, who involuntarily took a step back. "And you… I'm sure that you want to revive your clan some day. What happens when your children are misbehaving, _hm_?"

"But I'm only thirteen…"

"Do not worry. I will combine your ideas for punishment and Ino-san's ideas, remove any flaws, and issue it to Gaara. Please discuss any ideas you have, and then present them to me. You have three minutes." The Hokage gestured for the two to start talking. Naruto and Mayu nearly jumped. Quickly they huddled up and began whispering back and forth.

"What should we do, Mayu?! I don't really want to punish Gaara!"

"You think I do? I don't even know where to start!"

"… How about… we restrict him from having ramen for a couple of mon-" Mayu smacked the back of his before he could finish.

"Idiot…! Do you really think anyone likes ramen as much as you?! That punishment would only affect you alone!" Naruto rubbed his head. He sighed heavily as he put his head down.

"Sorry..."

"We need to think about what he did first, I guess. Since Gaara-kun came to our village, he has hurt many of our comrades." Naruto waved a hand in front of his face.

"Yeah, but that's because it was the chuunin exam! He really didn't have a choice." Mayu nodded in agreement. "We should focus more on his actions _outside_ of the exam."

Sasuke watched his teammates whisper back and forth. He couldn't necessarily hear what they were saying. Although, if he wanted to, he could… His teammates smacked each other's heads a couple of times before they quieted down again. Sasuke smirked when Mayu put Naruto in a headlock. _"What an odd team I have…"_ He shoved his hands into his pockets. The Hokage suddenly clapped his hands. Naruto and Mayu instantly scrambled into attention. "Well, let's here it…!"

"Yes, what have you come up with?" the Hokage asked.

"Because of his actions, we feel that Gaara-kun should not be a ninja for a period of time," Mayu began. "He has no allegiance to any hidden village, so technically he is not a ninja. Any real ninja would hate this punishment. It's like breaking a potter's hand. It's like blinding an artist. So this punishment should suffice." It was quiet for a few moments as the Hokage rubbed his beard.

"_Hm_… Very well, I shall remember your suggestion when I am speaking to Ino-san." Mayu breathed out a sigh of relief as Sasuke once against stood beside his team. "Now that that matter is settled, we can move on to the next topic I wanted to discuss with you." The trio seemed confused. "The chuunin exam is officially over. It is time, Ishikari-san." Mayu's teammates turned to her. The Hokage was quick to notice. "_Ah_, so they both know now?"

"Yes," she replied with a nod of her head. "I would have told Kakashi-sensei also, but… I couldn't find him in the hospital."

"Well, that makes things a bit easier." There was a sudden knock at the door. "They're right on time. Come in!" The door slowly creaked opened, causing all heads to turn. The genin of Team 7 stared in surprise.

"Yo," the new arrival gave a two fingered way.

"Kakashi-sensei…!" Naruto exclaimed, pointing a finger.

"You're alive…!" Mayu also pointed a finger. The older ninja fell out of place.

"It feels like I just got insulted," he murmured. He moved forward and patted the two boys of the team on their heads. "Glad to see that you guys are alright." His visible eye moved to his leader. "Hokage-sama…" He bowed his head in greeting. "You wished to see me?" he asked, lifting his head.

"Yes, but where is the girl?"

"_Hm_… She didn't speak much, but she did say she had to use the bathroom." The copy-nin shrugged. "She's been in there for awhile now…" Mayu rolled her eyes at what he had implied. The Hokage then told the girl to explain to Kakashi what she had told her teammates. Mayu nodded and did as she was told. After she was finished Kakashi rubbed his chin. "_Hm_… I must say that I did have my doubts that you were Haruno Sakura, especially when you used your clan's jutsu on Hyuga Hinata." Mayu rubbed the back of her head, grinning. Kakashi smiled underneath his mask, and then rubbed the girl's head. "I've gotten quite fond of you, Mayu." His eye looked towards the Hokage. "It would be a shame if you were to suddenly leave." Naruto noticed his stare and rounded on his leader.

"Old man, don't tell me you're going to make her quit being our teammate!" he shouted, pointing a finger. "But she's apart of our team now!" Sarutobi held up his hand to stop the protests, but Sasuke, surprisingly, began his rebuttal as well.

"With all due respect, Hokage-sama, I don't think that's a good idea." He looked his leader straight in the eyes. "Having Mayu suddenly leave would most likely damage the team as a whole."

"I have already created a team for Mayu-san to be on. Besides, I was going to replace her with another kunoichi, so-"

"NO WAY…!" Naruto rapidly shook his head. "I don't want anyone but her! She helped me a lot since she became my teammate… I won't just give her up!"

"Naruto…" Mayu looked his way with sad eyes. "It's okay… If those are Hokage-sama's wishes, then-"

"No, it's not okay!" Sasuke grabbed Mayu's shoulder and forced her to look at him. "Didn't we just say that we're teammates? What happened to that? What happened with sticking with each other to the very end? Was that all a lie?!" Sasuke shoved Mayu away before she protest. His onyx eyes turned to the Hokage. "Even if she is a moron, I won't accept anyone else. She's been my teammate since the very beginning. No one else will do."

Outside of the room, a girl reared her head back from the door. She was more than a little surprised at what she heard. Although his voice was the same as she remembered, she could never remember a time when the Uchiha spoke so passionately. The girl narrowed her eyes and clenched her teeth. Her fingers curled into a fist. _"What the hell…?! This girl is pissing me off!"_ No one had ever made Sasuke speak like that.

Back in the room, everyone was silent. The Hokage stared. The four ninja stared back. The three shinobi were in defiant stances. Mayu, however, shifted nervously. Sarutobi finally let out a slow breath, breaking the silence. "Very well… Since each of you seems to determine to keep her, I will allow it to be so. Once Haruno Sakura and Ishikari Mayu return to their respective bodies, Ishikari Mayu will be an official member of Team 7."

"Really…?!" Mayu exclaimed, only to be tackled by her energetic teammate. The collision caused the two of them to slam into Sasuke, taking them all down to the floor.

"Naruto, you idiot!"

The blond shinobi ignored Sasuke's insult and hugged his two teammates tightly. The two wheezed out nonsense. "Isn't this great, you guys?! We really will be together forever!" His excitement, however, got no response from his teammates. Naruto stopped laughing, blinked, and then looked down. His teammates' eyes had been replaced with comical swirls.

"I think you killed them," Kakashi commented with a chuckle.

"This is no laughing matter, Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto hugged his teammates close. "I'm so sorry, so come back to life, damn it!" Two punches to the face was the response he got.

"Quit doing stupid things!" Sasuke stood, along with Mayu.

"I'm glad, too," she said, rubbing her head. She winced when she felt the spot that had collided with Sasuke's headband. "But that doesn't mean I'm going to tackle you all! Be more careful next time. You could cause brain damage."

"I think you already have that, cocoon girl."

"I dare you to say that again, bird brain!"

Before the Uchiha could retort, a knock at the door drew in everyone's attention. Sarutobi cleared his throat. "Yes, you may enter." On cue, the door opened, revealing a fellow kunoichi. She looked as if she was in the same age group as the three genin. She stepped into the room, closing the door behind her. Her hair was a dark color. She had a pair of blue eyes, which were narrowed. There was also a small, but noticeable frown on her face. Her skin color was light brown. She was wearing a red shirt and white shorts. Standard ninja sandals were on her feet. She crossed her arms and focused a fierce look on Mayu.

"Huh…? Who's she?" Naruto thumbed at the visitor, while looking at the Hokage.

"Ah, this would be-"

"Haruno Sakura," the kunoichi interrupted her leader. "I'll take my body back now."

The males of Team 7 had to do a double take. Before, they didn't really look long enough, but what she said forced them to look again. After all, this girl would be the new image of their female teammate. Mayu finally turned to face her body. "It looks better than it did before," she murmured. _"But my body looks weaker than I am now. I used to have muscles on those legs."_ She mentally cried as she continued to stare at her body.

"Stop staring and return what's mine, body snatcher!" Sakura glared. Mayu glared right back.

"Are you, by anyway chance, insulting my clan?" She cracked her knuckles. Sakura merely scoffed.

"Just get on with it, already. I'm tired of having this ugly body as my own."

Before Mayu could charge, Sarutobi cleared his throat. "Mayu-san, I have the scrolls." The kunoichi turned to her leader. In his hand was a scroll. Mayu nodded, and then went over to take the scroll from him. She slowly opened the scroll, recognizing the characters. "I'm sure that it will take a lot of chakra to perform?"

"That's not a problem. The chakra in my body will also be used," the girl responded as her eyes scanned across paper. "Sakura, you're going to have to stand in front of me—no, you should sit. The rest of you back away. There's a chance I'll mess up and end up in one of your bodies." The occupants of the room moved according to her request. Mayu sat across Sakura with her legs cross. Sakura reluctantly copied her position after being told to due so. Mayu spread the cross out in between Sakura and herself. Her hands came together in a ram hand sign.

Naruto leaned closer to Sasuke. "This isn't going to be the same as the other times, is it?" he asked in a whispered. The Uchiha shook his head.

"It's not… Mayu has been in Sakura's body for awhile. She's been using Sakura's body as if it were really her own. This isn't going to be as easy as a simple 'release' like before." He watched the girl begin to create hand signs. Her pace was relatively slow. He guessed that she didn't want to ruin the jutsu. "Let's just hope it turns out right." Mayu suddenly slammed her hands together and opened her mouth, causing many of the room's occupants to tense in anticipation.

"Transfer Mind…" A burst of chakra seemed to suddenly explode from Sakura's body. "Transfer Body…" Another burst caused Naruto and Sasuke to shiver. "Transfer Soul!" The kunoichi let out a deafening cry as if she was going into battle. Sakura suddenly gasped. Her head sprung back and her eyes rolled into the back of head. Panicking, Naruto made a move to rush to his teammate's aid. A hand on his shoulder stopped; it was Sasuke. He shook his head. Mayu gritted her teeth, trying to concentrate. Her cries had fortunately stopped. "**Forbidden Ninja Art: Transportation of Ishikari Liberation**!" Once again, chakra exploded, this time from both of the girls' bodies. Green eyes rolled back.

"Mayu…!"

Gusts of wind suddenly seemed to come from nowhere, moving small weight objects around. "Large amounts of chakra are surrounding them." Kakashi's voice made his subordinates turn to him. He had revealed his Sharingan eye. A bright light emitted from the two kunoichi, causing everyone around to shield their eyes. It took awhile, but the light finally faded away. The shinobi slowly removed their arms from their eyes. What they saw was the two kunoichi lying one the ground; their bodies were limp. "Did the jutsu end?"

"Mayu…!" The blond rushed over. He picked the kunoichi up. "Mayu…!" He repeated her name even louder. Green eyes snapped open. A harsh blow to the cheek sent Naruto flying into the wall.

"Don't touch me like you know me!" The kunoichi screeched loudly as she stood. All heads turned to the other body.

The kunoichi slowly sat up, panting heavily. She opened her blue eyes. "It… It… worked…" She fell back, only to be caught by Sasuke. He lifted her off the ground bridal style. "I'm… fi-fine…" Naruto and Kakashi walked over to the two. "Just… Just put me down."

"Your body is shaking." Sasuke stared down at the new—original—image of his teammate. "You used way too much chakra."

Sakura's green eyes grew wide as she continued to watch the three shinobi fuss over the body snatcher. She slowly stood as her mouth formed into a tight frown. Again, her hands curled into fists. _"Why is Sasuke-kun…?" _

_**Two**_

Unbeknownst to her or the other occupants of the room, the mark had activated and began to spread across the kunoichi's body. It wasn't until she felt the searing pain that she dropped to her knees, screaming. This drew in everyone's attention. Sakura grabbed her arm. It felt as if thousand of needles were drilling into her skin. She screamed again as she scratched at the bandage. "Wh-What is this…?! It hurts!" Her scared green eyes looked toward her idol. By now the dark marks had spread across her entire face and her other arm. "… Sasuke-kun… hel-help me…!" The shinobi did not move. He was too stunned by what he was seeing. "Why does it hurt so much?!" Sakura squeezed her eyes closed.

"I… forgot… about that…" Mayu panted. She moved around until Sasuke was forced to set her down. She went over to the withering kunoichi and grabbed her shoulders. "Just… calm yourself, Sakura! Let the mark retract!"

"Easy for you to-to say, you—_argh_!" Sakura groaned and fell against Mayu's shoulder. Frowning, the kunoichi repeated what she said and told Sakura to breathe. Finally, she actually listened to her fellow kunoichi. Sakura's breathing slowly returned to normal. The marks returned to the regular three tomoe on the girl's arm. The two girls stayed in that position for a moment. Sakura suddenly brought her arm up and gripped Mayu's shoulder. She leaned in closer to her ear. "Don't you… _dare_ think this means we're friends!" she whispered, so that the others could not hear. "Because of you, my mother is dead." Blue eyes grew wide in shock. "I won't _ever_ forgive you for taking what's mine. My mother, my friends, my team, my Sasuke-kun—you took them all, and I won't forgive you." Sakura shoved Mayu to the floor, causing her teammates to glare at her as she stood. "If you have no further use for me, Hokage-sama, I'll leave now." The old man nodded his head. Sakura bowed before leaving, shoving past Naruto on her way.

The blond shinobi watched her go with a frown on his face. He rubbed his shoulder. "When did Sakura-chan get so mean?" He and Sasuke went over to help Mayu up. She still had the look of shock on her face. "Hey, what's wrong, Mayu?" The kunoichi turned to the blond shinobi. Slowly a smile appeared.

"No, nothing… I just realized that it's going to be kinda weird to have you guys call me by my real name from now on." She scratched her cheek. Naruto and Sasuke gave her a skeptic look, yet they remained silent.

Sarutobi cleared his throat again, breaking the silence and causing all present to turn to him. "Now that you have your body back, I will tell you your living arrangements." Mayu looked confused.

"Living arrangements?"

"Why, of course. You didn't think you'd be returning to your home, did you?" The Hokage picked up some papers as he returned to his seat. He placed the papers on the desk, and then looked back at the kunoichi. "I wouldn't ask you to return to that place so soon. I'm sure you're not ready…" Mayu shook her head. "That's what I thought, so I have already decided where you will stay. He smiled. "Congratulations, you are now Uzumaki Naruto's neighbor."

"_Eh_…?"

"_AH_…!" Naruto hit his fist against the palm of his hand. "I remember now! You are my neighbor! I met you before!" His teammates were as confused as they looked. "Oh, well… I guess it was Sakura-chan, not you, but it was definitely this body. I only saw you once, though, because I was too busy training. Your apartment building is right down the hall from mine."

"No way…!" A grin spread on her face. "That's incredible!" Naruto also grinned, rubbing his nose with his finger. The Hokage tossed a key to the kunoichi, which she caught in surprise. _"Glad to know I still have my reflexes…"_

"Well since you are well acquainted, Naruto, you can be the one to show her to her apartment," Sarutobi said. The blond shinobi saluted his leader, and then dragged both Mayu and Sasuke out of the room. The adults chuckled, hearing the protests that came from the Uchiha. Sarutobi turned his attention to the team leader. "Kakashi." The masked ninja turned. "I have something to discuss with you about your team." Kakashi nodded, signaling for his boss to go on. "Please keep in mind that this is only temporary…"

--

Mayu's mouth dropped open in shock. Her other two teammates wore similar expression. They had entered her apartment—her new home—only to find the place in shambles. Furniture was tossed around, the television was broken, holes were in the wall as if someone had had a punching spree, and there was red paint all over the walls as if someone had thrown a bucket of it against the wall. And in giant black characters, someone had written various insults on the walls and floor. 'FAKER,' 'Go back to where you came from,' 'Thief,' were just a few of the writings. "Um… I guess the war… was a little close to here, huh?" Mayu rubbed her neck as her eyes surveyed the damaged.

Her teammates didn't respond. They knew that it was highly unlikely that a conflict happened here, and just in this one place. Someone had deliberately done this, and their obvious target was Mayu. "You can stay at my place tonight, Mayu. I don't mind." The blond shinobi definitely knew this was on purpose. He had come home to similar damage to his apartment when he was younger. Naruto pushed his teammates out of the apartment and closed the door. He took the key that was still in the doorknob and gave it to the kunoichi. "Tomorrow, I'll help you fix up your place, so no worries!" His grin was big, and it caused Mayu to smile. "Now let's go! Sleepover!" He pumped his fist into the air.

Mayu chuckled as she followed after her blond teammate. Sasuke rolled his eyes before following after the two. After unlocking the door, Naruto went inside, beckoning his guest to do the same. "Wonder what it looks like…" Sasuke shoved his hands into his pockets, going after Mayu. A light was switched on. Mayu let out a scream, and nearly knocked Sasuke over trying to escape. He held onto her, wondering what had caused such a fright. "What the hell are you doing, Mayu?!"

"Sp-Sp-Spider…! I will not sleep here!"

Naruto poked his head out of the door. "Come on, it's not that bad!" He waved them in. Mayu finally stopped struggling against Sasuke hold. She whirled around and pointed a finger at the blond.

"Your apartment is a garbage dump! There's no way—I bet there's not even enough room for me to sleep here!" Tired of being left out, Sasuke went around his teammate to look at what she was talking about. He made a face.

"This is bad, Naruto."

The blond shinobi stuttered out a 'shut up' while walking toward his teammates. So the place was a bit messy… Okay, he admitted, it was a lot messy, but still! Trash was scattered throughout the living space. Also, books and scrolls were everywhere. Sasuke turned on his heel. Mayu watched him go before grabbing on to the back of his top. "And where do you think you're going?"

"Home," was his curt reply.

Mayu bristled before yanking him back. "Don't be like that, Sasuke! Let me sleep over your house!" Sasuke gave her a look that said 'hell no.' "Sasuke…! You can't expect me to sleep _here_!"

"Hey, in case you've forgotten, _I_ sleep here!" Naruto stated with a frown.

"Sasuke…!" The kunoichi continued to whine, completely ignoring Naruto's statement. The blond shinobi huffed indignantly as he crossed his arms.

"No way…! If I let you, Naruto would want to, so n-"

"Really…? Sleepover at Sasuke's, you say?" Sasuke glared at his fellow ninja.

"Haha! Party at Sasuke's!" Mayu flung her arms up in a cheer.

"No, you idiots!" But it was too late. His teammates were already cheering. Naruto, again, pushed them out and locked his door. The two linked arms with the grumbling Uchiha before hurrying along. "No, I will lose brain cells because of you!" Ignoring him, the two picked up speed and were now dragging him along. "It's still before noon, you retards!"

The three moved along, unaware of their silent spectator. She sat on top of a building, arms and legs crossed. Her short dark hair swayed in the wind. A smirk slowly made its way on her face. _"As I thought… She's not even the least bit remorseful about her death." _The kunoichi stood up. _"You better enjoy your fun time while you can. I'll enjoy taking you down, Ishikari Mayu."_ Haruno Sakura turned and began walking away, not caring that the curse mark was pulsating.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Finished June 6, 2009

Well, if you haven't already noticed, the title and summary has changed! Finally, the change has come. And with this change comes a whole different plot surrounding this new team. Will you stay tuned to find out what awaits them? If you don't—sucks for you!

Next time: _Love Me or Hate Me_


	18. Love Me or Hate Me

It had been a little over a week since the invasion had ended. It seemed much longer than that to the losing country. The Sand village had suffered many loses since the defeat handed to them by the Leaf village. Hundreds of sand ninja were sent to attack the Leaf village. A little under half of them returned. Many of the ninja that had returned were severely hurt, and most likely wouldn't be doing any mission anytime soon. Many had died during the short conflict, but more casualties had definitely belonged to the Sand.

Temari sighed lightly as she stared at the ceiling of her room. Even her sensei, Baki, had been killed, she heard. The kunoichi closed her eyes, deep in thought. There had indeed been many loses on their side. The names of the ninja that had not made it had been called out during the funeral. Turns out, the Kazekage, her father, had been killed before the chuunin exam had even started. She had been very surprised by this, yet not remorseful. It had been his own fault for trusting that man, Orochimaru. She had always thought that attacking their allies was a mistake, but no one listened to her opinion. And now because of a mistake, the Sand village's population had decreased in a few short hours.

Even so, Temari had no idea what happened to her younger brother. His name had not been mentioned, and yet he had not come back with them. No information concerning her brother had been told to either her or Kankuro. She had no clue where he was or how he was doing. Although she was definitely scared of him--scared of that thing inside of him--as an older sister, she couldn't help but to be a little worried. She seemed to be the only one in the village that showed concern for Gaara. Some, in fact, celebrated his lack of presence.

A knock at the door interrupted the kunoichi's thoughts. She sat up on her bed. She moved to get up when she heard the knocking again. One more knock was heard before she opened the door. Outside of the room, Kankuro blinked, and then lowered his hand. It seemed like a long time since he had spoken to her. "Yo," he greeted. "The higher ups want to see us immediately. They said it was urgent." Temari stared at her brother before nodding her head. She shut the door and began to quickly get ready. Once she was ready, she moved quickly to the front door of the house. Kankuro was waiting for her.

The two siblings reached the office in a matter of minutes. Temari hesitated before knocking on the door. A voice ushered the two in. The kunoichi opened the door. She was greeted by the whole village council. Usually, all of them didn't have to be in the same place. Whatever the matter was, it must be important. The two stepped in, giving a bow of respect. Kankuro shut the door as Temari moved to the center of the U-shaped table. The puppet-user did the same and waited for them to speak. "So why is it that you wanted to see us?"

"First, we'd like to start off by saying that we have publically surrendered to the Leaf village. To them, our betrayal is not important at the moment. It was Orochimaru's planning, and so their Hokage is lenient towards our village. However, I do feel that it will be some time before they trust us again." The man locked his hands together as he stared at the two Sand genin.

"The Leaf village has accepted our surrender. However, because of Orochimaru and the Fourth Kazekage, the Sand village has taken quite a lot of damage, strength wise. At this point, our top priority would be to protect our village. At the moment, we are weak and virtually defenseless. If another nation were to attack, we would stand no chance." Another nodded his head as he spoke.

"Not to sound like I don't care, but what does that have to do with us?" Kankuro shoved his hand into his pocket. A bored expression was on his face. He had been in the middle of tweaking his puppets when the messenger came.

Many of the men furrowed their eyebrows together at the blatant display of disrespect. "Watch your tongue, Kankuro. You are no longer held in high regard because of who your father is—or rather _was_." The puppet-user sneered. "As we were saying-" The man coughed. "-the village needs protection. We need Gaara." Temari narrowed her eyes. She did not like where this was going. Then again, neither did Kankuro it seemed.

"What are you saying?" The kunoichi stepped forward. "Are you saying you want us to go back and get him?"

"That is precisely what we are suggesting."

The two siblings gapped at the men. "Are you crazy?! We'll be killed on site!" Kankuro glared. "I'm not dying because of him! I decline!"

"Frankly, you have no other choice. But I admit that you are much too weak to go right now, so you will be trained nonstop in preparation for you mission."

"I can not believe that you want us to steal Gaara!" Temari voiced her thoughts. "You do realize that this could spark another conflict? That's the last thing our village needs right now!"

"We have no other choice! The Leaf village refuses to give out any information about Gaara. We don't know what has happen to him. We must take him back in order to ensure the future of our village. He is still our last resort."

Throughout his talking, Temari was trying desperately to keep from snapping. Her hands were clenched at her sides. She listened to the council continue to go on and on about the village and Gaara. The kunoichi could actually feel her blood racing through her veins. "Enough…!" Surprised, the men instantly quieted. While it was not the first time Temari had protested their—and the Kazekage's orders—it was the first time she had used such a tone and such a demanding aura. "I am sick of this! We just got out of a conflict, and you want to get into another one?! You think the Leaf will let us get away with it a second time?!"

"Temari, we are not your family. We do not have to listen-"

"No!" The kunoichi looked absolutely infuriated. Some of the men shifted in their seats. Although, they were in a high-ranking position, they weren't exactly the strongest of ninja. They didn't doubt that the teen could potentially send them all to the hospital. "I am the former Kazekage's daughter, and you _will_ listen to me! I will not stand by and let you idiots destroy our village. Gaara _is_ important—that much I can agree on—and getting him back is also important. But it is _not_ the top priority right now! Right now, we should focus on gaining the trust back of the Leaf. We shouldn't have listened to that Orochimaru guy in the first place! Going into their village and stealing their prisoner of war after they had accepted our surrender is like pissing all over their leniency. That is not something that we can afford! Am I the only one in this village who actually knows what's best for the Sand?!" Temari panted lightly, aware that all eyes were on her. "I refuse to run our village into the ground. I will get stronger, but not to take Gaara back. I will get stronger in order to keep the village standing. I will work and train like never before to ensure our future, so you can just shove that _mission_ right up your ass!"

With that last statement, the Sand kunoichi turned on her heel and made her exit. The slamming of the door caused Kankuro to wince. Temari would only get that angry when she was PMSing over something small like leftovers. His eyes looked from the door to the council a few times. "Going back to that village right now would be a big mistake." He finally focused on the council. "As you said, they have accepted our yield, but they have by no means become our allies again." Kankuro turned to go. "Oh, and one more thing…" His back was to the council. "Don't even think about assigning anyone else that mission—you could very well start an uprising. The citizens and ninja would probably listen to the children of their former leader than a couple of stuck-up old men. So keep that in mind when you discuss what's next." The puppeteer, unlike his sister, left in a peaceful manner.

It was silent in the room for a few minutes after the two siblings had left. The center man of the council finally cleared his throat. "Well, I think we can all agree on this." He looked to the other members to see them nodding. "It was a bit odd considering how they normally behave, but I think we've found our guy. Those in favor…?" He lifted his hand.

"Aye…!" Those around him spoke in unison.

It had been a unanimous decision.

--

Naruto stopped scrubbing the floor for a moment to brush the sweat from his face. He and his team were working hard to clean up. Mayu's apartment was already finished. They had to repaint and everything. At the moment, the team was cleaning up his apartment. The kunoichi of his team demanded that his living space be 'spick and span,' whatever the heck that meant. She had somehow convinced Sasuke to help out. Though, it was obvious the Uchiha did not want to. Hell, he hadn't wanted to clean Mayu's apartment. Naruto grinned as he watched his teammate screech, and then killed another spider with the bug spray. She was scared, but still referred to herself as 'The Spider Slayer.' His teammate was definitely a weird one. "Would you stop spraying that stuff? We're all going to pass out if you keep at it!" Sasuke had not looked away from his task, which was picking up trash and putting them in a garbage bag.

"This is the only way to kill them!"

"You could always squash them…"

"No way am I getting near those evil creatures from hell!"

"Hey, guys…!" Naruto called to them before an argument could ensue. "After we finish, let's go for lunch—my treat!" The two blinked, and then nodded. "We should be done in a few minutes!" The blond continued scrubbing. "Man, I've never seen this place so clean! I owe you guys a lot!" Sasuke nodded his head in agreement.

"You're damn right you do. I could be training right now."

"_You _could be training? I think we all could be training right now, but we're doing this out of the kindness of our hearts, right, Sasuke?"

"I'm only doing this because you threatened to tie me up—naked, take pictures, and sell them to my Fangirls for profit," the shinobi replied with a flat look.

Mayu waved her hand. "Details are overrated!" She jumped at the sight of another spider. Again, she sprayed away, ignoring the coughing fit it put her teammates in. She was wearing a doctor's mask. Both males angrily shouted for her stop. A cloud of toxic fumes covered the entire living space. "There! That should take care of the little buggers once and for all!" She turned around to see her teammates wilting away on the ground. "Oh, you big wimps…!" The kunoichi dropped the empty can, opened all the windows, and the dragged her teammates out of the apartment. Their limp bodies were quite heavy. "Not that I don't mind the weight—it is probably making me stronger—but seriously, stop playing dead."

"We wouldn't have to play dead if you hadn't tried to kill us," Naruto commented, without opening his eyes. Mayu rolled her eyes as she continued to pull them away from the apartment complex. She finally stopped, tired. She panted lightly as she held her knees. "We weren't that heavy." Mayu continued to pant, stating that they were 'fat wimps!' The two shinobi finally stood. Sasuke coughed to remind her that he was not letting it go. The kunoichi only rolled her eyes. "Well, since we're out, mind as well get lunch! To the ramen stand!" He thrust his finger up high.

Within moments the three were standing outside the Ichiraku ramen stand. It was only a short walk away from Naruto's place. No wonder he ate the most of the time, Sasuke thought, going in first. The owner of the stand greeted the three as they entered. Mayu gave a small bow, and smiled politely. Sasuke and Naruto sat on either side of the kunoichi. "So, Naruto, are these the two you keep talking about?" The owner began to prepare the noodles. The blond shinobi grinned as the other two looked slightly confused.

"Yup…! This one is Sasuke! And this one is Mayu! Her name used to be Sakura-chan, but-" Sasuke and Mayu smacked the back up his head before he could finished. "Hey…!" The two narrowed their eyes at him. "Oh…" He suddenly remembered. His kunoichi teammate was actually a secret. Only a few knew of her existence at the moment. The team hadn't seen the other Rookie Nine since the end of the invasion, so they didn't know. No one really knew besides Sasuke, Kakashi-sensei, the Third, and himself. "Well, this is them!" Naruto rubbed the back of his head. His teammates had hit him quite hard. "Together, we're Team 7!"

The owner, Teuchi, chuckled. "Well, don't be too hard on him when you train." He grinned at Naruto's offended protests. "So, what will it be?"

"Chicken…!" Mayu exclaimed.

"Pork!" Naruto answered.

"Roast Beef," Sasuke replied.

"Got it! Chicken, Pork, and Roast Beef—coming up!" Teuchi held out his hand. Naruto quickly gave the man three ramen passes.

"No wonder you said your treat—the meal is practically free." Mayu grinned.

The three ninja waited in silence for their meal. Mayu, unconsciously, began to drum her fingers against the counter. Her other hand held her head up. Her eyes wandered aimlessly around the stand. They stopped on her teammates several times. She smiled at the thought. _"My teammates, huh…?"_ She was more than happy the Hokage had allowed her to continue to be on Team 7. She even happier that the two males had accepted her the way they did. Even Sasuke, the stoic character, had accepted and had even said he would take no one else. He had no idea how his words had made her feel. He had known all along, but it still felt good for him to say that he thought of her as a friend and equal. Naruto, too… He hadn't known, and yet still forgave her for lying. He, too, thought of her as an equal and a friend. However… Mayu let a small frown cross her face. _"I'm not exactly equal to them anymore. They're much stronger than I am now. I really need to train my body. I need to work and train harder than ever before if I want to catch up with them."_ With a determined nod, Mayu decided. "Okay, you two, listen up!" The two shinobi turned to her, surprised by her sudden outburst. "We're going to train together from this moment on. As I am now, I need all the help I can get."

"What are you talking about? You're already strong! You went head to head against Sasuke!" Naruto said.

"Yeah, but that's when—you know…" The two nodded their heads. "Now, as I am, I'm definitely not tough enough or strong enough to go against someone as strong as you guys. Don't worry, though. My training will work for all of us."

"What does that mean?" Sasuke asked.

"It means we can learn from each other during our training together. We'll know each other's way of attacking and defending to a more accurate point. So in a real battle we can tell what one another are thinking without saying anything." Mayu crossed her arms. "Remember my fight with Hinata?" Naruto bobbed his head, remembering that awesome fight. That girl, Hyuga Hinata had been really good. "Until she took out those weapons of hers, it appeared as if we knew each other's movements. The reason why, I realized, is because we fought together and trained together a lot before hand. So I think we should do the same."

"Makes sense," Sasuke remarked. "I am curious to know how you trained for body for the finals. When I punched you stomach, you hardly flinched."

"That's the power of rock-hard abs, baby!" Mayu held up a thumb up. "My training builds stamina, agility, flexibility, speed, and most importantly develops muscles so that your body can withstand the strongest impact!" She gave a victory sign with a grin.

"Alright…!" Naruto cheered, copying her victory sign. "Mayu's training sounds awesome! Let's do it!"

Sasuke almost rolled his eyes. But he had to admit that the training's results were very favorable. He had experienced the results of her training first hand. He was… impressed. "Fine, I don't mind training with you two. Just don't drag me down." Mayu clamped a hand down on his shoulder before Naruto could start shouting. Sasuke smirked. "You'd better keep up with me, or I'll leave you both behind." Naruto shrugged Mayu's hand over as he crossed his arms. He scoffed with his eyes closed.

"You don't have to worry about that. It's not going to happen—not _ever_!"

Mayu grinned. She noticed that their rivalry wasn't as violent as before. Their rivalry was on the borderline of healthy now. Perhaps now they wouldn't try to kill each other every five minutes. A bowl was set in front of her, causing her to perk up. She blinked in surprise at the size of the bowl. It was bigger than normal. She noted that Sasuke and Naruto also received larger bowls. The three genin looked up in question. "You said you were training right?" Teuchi smiled big. "You need to eat to accomplish that. Work hard, you three!" Naruto and Mayu broke out into smiles; Sasuke only smirked. They picked up the chopsticks.

"Itadakimasu…!" The three said in unison—Naruto and Mayu being more loud than their other teammate. They happily slurped up their noodles. "Oh, God…! This is so amazing!" Mayu squealed in between slurps. Naruto nodded his head in full agreement. He didn't always say that this place was the best for nothing!

Besides the sounds of slurping, the three ninja ate in silence. Teuchi suddenly looked up. He smiled when he realized that it was another customer. He greeted as the person moved the paper flap out of the way. The new arrival smirked as his eyes scanned the three genin. "I almost can't believe it myself. Guess I had to see it to believe it!" His voice caused three heads to turn; Naruto still had noodles coming out of his mouth. "You really do only eat ramen."

"Who are you?" Sasuke asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Pervy Sage…?!" Naruto shouted with a mouthful of noodles.

"Well, that explains that," Mayu retorted with a flat stare.

"I told you to stop calling me that in public." The older man said as he took a seat next to the blond ninja. Sasuke stared at the newcomer with curious eyes. His appearance was—for lack of a better word—loud, just like Naruto. He had long, spiky, white hair. Red lines stretched from under his eyes down to his cheeks. There was a giant scroll strapped to his back as well. As the man and Naruto conversed, Sasuke and Mayu were whispering back and forth.

"Who is this guy?"

"You don't remember…? Naruto told us he was the one to train him for the finals!" Mayu murmured. "Calling him by that name was a dead giveaway. But his real name is Jiraiya-sama."

"I wasn't really paying attention that time…"

"What could have possibly distracted you?"

"… I saw a cat across the street…"

"…"

"Shut up."

Naruto and the man suddenly stood up. "Oh, you're finished?" Mayu drank the rest of the broth in her bowl before also standing. Not wanting to waste his meal, Sasuke quickly finished as well. The kunoichi wiped her upper lip as she followed the two outside. The Uchiha gave a curt nod to the owner, and then left. The group of four walked in silence until Naruto couldn't take it anymore.

"Why?! Why?! Why do I have to go with you on your research trip?!" He sounded as if he were complaining.

"No, this is not the same as a normal research trip." Jiraiya shook his head, coming to a stop. Naruto also stopped, allowing his teammates to catch up. "We have to find a woman and ask a couple of questions. Besides, it's not just you that's going." His eyes moved over to the other two genin. "They're coming with us."

"_Eh_…?!" Mayu pointed at herself while Sasuke looked confused.

"But we have to train! We just agreed on it!" Naruto pouted. "Sasuke is definitely going to show me how to do Chidori! Oh, and I want to learn Tsukeru, too!"

"Huh…?!" Sasuke and Mayu both looked skeptical.

"Um… I don't think you're going to be able to pull those moves off, kid." Jiraiya smiled, nervously. "Those two moves are extremely powerful." Mayu nodded her head proudly. Naruto shook his head, and said that he wouldn't go. "What a shame… And I happen to know a jutsu that is stronger…" The Sanin walked away, whistling a merry tune.

In a split second, the three genin were up in his face. "What…?! Stronger?!" Naruto got closer. "Hell yeah! I'll definitely go!"

"What do you mean stronger than Tsukeru?! Are you insulting my jutsu?!"

"I'd have to see this to believe it! Stronger than Chidori—yeah right!"

The three took off down the street, shouting that they were going to pack. Jiraiya blinked, watching as the dust they had kicked up as they ran. The smiled, and then let out a chuckle. He scratched his head as the dust finally cleared. "Geez… what a cute team." He grinned. The toad sage rubbed his chin. _"Uchiha and Ishikari, huh…? Who would have thought that the two would reunite like this?" _Jiraiya smirked. _"This will prove to be interesting."_

--

"Alright…!" Naruto made sure his sandals were comfortable. His backpack was securely strapped to his back. "Let's go!" He tried to move, but his bag was way too full. Sasuke stared at his teammate with a flat expression. He mumbled how much an idiot Naruto was under his breath. Mayu shook her head, walking up to the group. She had seen him when he left the complex with that thing. She had wondered how he fit so much stuff inside.

"Looks like someone got way too excited!" She called with a wave. Two heads turned to her as she came to a stop. Naruto was still trying to get the bag outside of the gate. She carried a tan bag over her shoulder. "And I thought I brought a lot of things with me."

"Only our idiot would get this excited. We're not traveling around the world, you know…" Sasuke crossed his arms. A bag was strapped to his back as well, only his was much smaller. "You could have brought something smaller like the rest of us."

"Something told me that he was going to do this." Jiraiya shook his head. He pulled out another bag. "Put only the stuff you need inside. Hurry up, and let's go." Naruto sighed heavily. His team had begun to leave him behind. He shouted for them to wait as he hurriedly transferred the necessities in the other bag. Luckily, Jiraiya stayed behind. He sealed the larger bag into a scroll before catching up to the three genin.

It did not take long before Naruto's hyperactive curiosity to reach its peak. "Hey, hey, hey, Pervy Sage! What new jutsu are you going to teach me next?" Jiraiya didn't answer. He continued walking, not even glancing at the blond. This did not stop Naruto from talking, though. "You taught me how to walk on water last time… So will the next one be fire walking?" Naruto stopped at thought about the image. "Or maybe to walk on air? Wow, they both sound really cool!" He gasped in anticipation as he caught up with the rest of the group. "Come on, already! Teach me something else, Pervy Sage!" The four was just about to cross a small bridge when Jiraiya stopped.

"Pervy Sage, Pervy Sage… Is that what you think of me?" The man stared at Naruto. "Don't you know how great I am?"

"A great Pervy Sage?"

Jiraiya shook his head rapidly at the blond ninja's response. He dashed to the top of the bridge and turned. The three blinked up at the man. "Listen up…! The title 'Frog Hermit' is just a disguise!" He slammed his foot down. "I shall reveal to you three my true identity. I am the man who has no enemies in the North, South, East, and West… Not even in the heavens! I am one of the Sanin… White-haired frog tamer… Even a crying baby would stare in awe… The great Jiraiya-sama!" He slammed his foot one more time. "This is me!" He finally focused in on the group of three… only to realize that they weren't there. He frantically looked around, only to discover that they had already crossed the bridge and was not paying any attention to him.

"So you said you learned how to walk on water?" Sasuke asked his teammate. An aggravated roar came from Jiraiya. The three ignored him. Naruto nodded his head proudly. "Kakashi-sensei taught me." He turned his head to Mayu. "What about you?"

"Yup…! Anko-sensei taught me! I may not have the same body, but I definitely still have the mindset. I can do anything that I learned in Sakura's body. I tried the stuff I learned and everything." The kunoichi frowned. "However, my speed, strength, and stamina aren't what they used to be." Naruto laughed and gave her a friendly pat on the shoulder.

"Don't worry, don't worry…! You'll be up to speed in no time!"

"Thanks for the encouragement, Naruto." Mayu clapped her hands together. "While don't we train while we travel, huh?"

"Wouldn't we have to stop to train?" Sasuke asked.

"Nope…! Not with this one! This exercise builds stamina. Also it can help to build muscles in this area." She pointed at Naruto's abdomen. "It works really well. Anko-sensei used it on me. My uncle's training was somewhat similar, too." The kunoichi stopped walking, turned and rushed toward Jiraiya. Naruto and Sasuke watched in confusion as she whispered in the Sanin's ear. They looked even more confused when Jiraiya grinned evilly. Mayu rushed back over to the two. "Okay, hope you guys are ready!"

The two looked back and forth between the kunoichi and the Sanin. The man looked as if he were about to throw something. "Here we go!" Jiraiya launched his arm forward. Mayu shot off. The two shinobi were still confused… that is until the thing that Jiraiya threw exploded near their feet.

"What the hell…?!" Naruto shouted jumping away. He took off when he noticed that Jiraiya looked as if he was going to throw something else. Sasuke followed his example. Explosion after explosion was heard as they practically zigzagged down the road. "WHAT THE HELL IS THAT PERVY SAGE DOING?!"

"Relax, it's apart of the exercise! The instructor throws explosives at the pupil, forcing them to dodge and run." Mayu's explanation would have been okay if it weren't for the smile on her face. "It gets your adrenaline rushing-" She halted and did a back flip. Her foot would have been damaged if she had continued to run forward. Naruto and Sasuke only gapped, glad that the bomb hadn't been in their path. "It also moves your body!" Mayu caught up with them. "This is definitely a good exercise to tone up your body!"

"In who's mind?!" Naruto and Sasuke shouted in unison.

--

"I think… I'm… gonna… die…" Naruto panted heavily as he leaned against the wall. Sweat dripped down his chin like rain. Sasuke was also sweating and panting deeply. He had not run that much in his life. He never really had to run for his life because of explosives before either. His hands were on his knees. He tried to get his breathing under control as he glared at the female member of the team. She was on her back, looking as if she would pass out any second, now. Her chest expanded and retracted at rapid speeds.

Jiraiya stepped over in an uncaring manner. "You shouldn't lay there. We are in front of a business establishment." The Sanin walked into the inn, not looking back at his three companions. Naruto threw the man a glare, and then turned his attention to Mayu. The kunoichi finally sat up. Slowly, she moved to her feet. Her legs trembled, but even so, there was a smile on her face.

"That was awesome, wasn't it?"

"Fuck… no…!" Sasuke panted out.

"But your stomach hurts, right?"

"That's not the only thing!" Naruto complained, rubbing his aching legs.

"That means you're developing muscles!" Mayu replied cheerfully. If their bodies weren't already throbbing because of that workout, they would have lunged at her.

The group had run all the way to this small village with Jiraiya hot on their heels. He seemed way too happy, throwing those explosive objects. They found out that it was because the three had ignored him when he had done his super, special, awesome introduction. "Hey…!" Three heads turned to the older man. He was still inside the building. "We're staying here for today."

"Eh…? But I'm pretty sure we can still get some training done."

"Not on your life!" Naruto pointed a finger at the kunoichi. The three walked forward, into the inn. It was then they noticed that Jiraiya was no longer looking their way. He was staring at something beyond their tired bodies. They turned to see what was so interesting.

Mayu produced a flat look. "I should have known…" she muttered, watching at the beautiful woman winked. She could hear Naruto and Jiraiya making a fuss because of the woman's action. She took a glance at Sasuke. Her mouth dropped open. "You… You really _are _a boy!" She pointed a finger at the blushing Sasuke.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?!" The Uchiha tore his eyes away. "I appreciate the body of a woman just as much as any guy!" Mayu only snickered into her hand, causing Sasuke to hit her upside the head.

Jiraiya suddenly dashed away, leaving Sasuke, Naruto, and Mayu alone. "I almost can't believe he left us alone…" The kunoichi turned, noticing the key in Naruto's hand. She took the key and found the number. "At least he made it so we can get into the room." She grabbed the hands of her two teammates and tried to find the room number that matched the key. "Ah, here it is!" She unlocked the door, and then went inside. Naruto and Sasuke followed her. The blond threw his bag on the floor and hopped on one of the two beds—the one closest to the window. He lay back with his hands behind his head.

"This sucks…!"

"Looks like we're not going to see that jutsu anytime soon…" Sasuke grumbled. His eyes landed on Mayu, who was rummaging through her bag. "What are you doing?"

"I'm sweaty, so I'm going to take a shower!" Out of her bag, she pulled several pieces of clothes. "Naruto, like Jiraiya-sama said, you should mold your chakra." Naruto only whined and complained. "Sasuke could probably help so good luck!" She tossed the key to Sasuke, who caught it. The young teen then left wave with a smile and a wave. The two stared at the door for a moment before turning to each other. They stared long and hard.

"Naruto, those Shadow Clones of yours are pretty useful—teach me that jutsu."

"Chidori is a good one, too—you teach that to me." Again they stared.

"No," they replied in unison.

Outside of the room, Mayu shook her head.

--

"I'm back!" Mayu opened the door. She was greeted by the sight of her teammate's clones. Sasuke was playing some card game with one of them. The real one, she was guessing, was on the bed molding his charka. The other clones were sleeping. She frowned as she closed the door. "Guess you two weren't very productive while I gone." She put her dirty clothing into her bag. The kunoichi stepped over several clones. She finally sat on the floor near Sasuke and the clone he was playing with. "What are you playing?"

"Go Fish." Sasuke's dark eyes scanned over his cards before looking at the giant grin on the clone's face. So far, the clone had three, while he had two. However, the clone had managed to take more of his cards. He sighed. "Do you have an eight?"

"Nope! Go Fish!"

"… Are you lying?"

"Sasuke, it's just a game…" Mayu's mouth twitched. She could tell that he was quickly becoming angry.

"I refuse to believe that this idiot is beating me at a strategy game!"

"Whatever, I got next!"

"This… it's always like this every time Pervy Sage is supposed to supervise my training." Naruto's body twitched. He wasn't really focusing. Creating clones had come like a second nature to him, after all. Too bad his clones were exactly like him. When boredom hit, it caused him to become sleepy, and that's just what his clones were doing—sleeping. "I'd rather play Go Fish, too!"

"Suck it up, Naruto." Sasuke gave another card to the clone, which caused his eyebrow to twitch. "You're the one that's going to learn some cool jutsu, right?"

"But it's not fair! You guys should train too!"

"The kind of training that I must do to catch up is not appropriate for our current surroundings." She looked back and forth between the clone's hand and Sasuke's. "Much too dangerous, and not to mention it could cause a lot of damage to this place." Naruto merely sighed at her explanation.

There was a sudden knock at the door, causing all heads to turn. Mayu moved to get up. "Hey…!" The kunoichi waved off Naruto's call. She told him to keep molding, which caused the blond to frown, but begin again as he was told. She opened the door. Her blue eyes grew wide, and then she promptly slammed it shut. The noise took Naruto's attention. The clones popped out of existence. "What's the matter?"

"Gian-Gian-Gian… Sh-Sha-Sh-Sh-Shar-" That's the only thing the teen managed to get out. She turned to her teammates with a scared look on her face.

Sasuke took this time to look at the clone's card, not paying attention to his teammate's stammering. His eye twitched. The clone's whole hand had been eights. "I knew he was lying!" Naruto stood up from the bed as Mayu continued stuttering. She now had managed to say a word he understood. Blue, she kept saying.

"Blue…?"

"Ther-There's a big, bl-blue shark we-wearing hu-human clothes!!"

"Nah un…!" Naruto gave her a skeptic look. "Quit fooling around!"

"I'm serious!!! Big, blue shark! It's got gills, man, _gills_!"

Naruto moved over to the door, pushing his teammate out of the way. He laughed again as he opened the door. "You are so weird!" His eyes finally looked up. His mouth dropped open. It looked as if it was about to speak. Naruto, however, didn't give it a chance to. He slammed the door just as Mayu had done. "Hey…! It real-really is a… Sh-Shark!"

"Quit it with the joke already." The Uchiha rolled his eyes as he stood. He dusted his bottom off, and then walked over to his teammates. "It's lame and not very thought out. Now, move, I'm sure the person outside thinks we're being rude." Naruto and Mayu both shook their heads. Sasuke sighed and pushed them out of the way, ignoring their objections. He opened the door.

"Don't you kids know that it is very rude to-" Sasuke did not hear the words. He only saw the sharp, pointy teeth, inside the… thing's mouth. He promptly slammed the door shut. The young Uchiha swallowed hard before he slowly turned his head to his teammates. They had 'told ya so' written all over their faces.

"Okay… so you were right, after all…"

The door was suddenly crashed into with a giant… "Tampon…?!" Mayu pointed. She and her team were already on the far side of the room. The shark outside must have heard her because it ripped the door off its hinges. It pointed the thing at her. It had a very angry expression. Mayu cowered in fear.

"You little brats… Not only were you rude, you also insulted Samehada." The shark stepped into the room. "I'm going to enjoy cutting you up."

"It's a… man…?" Naruto stated.

"_It's Kisame… I can't believe I forgot about this again!"_ Mayu thought, mentally beating herself with a stick. Quickly, the kunoichi moved to hide behind the bed. Sweat slid down her face as she crouched lower. If he was here, then surely the other would be here as well. She should have recognized that skin, and those Akatsuki clothes anywhere. Kisame took a step forward, eyes darting to and fro. The two shinobi unconsciously took a step back, not aware where Mayu had left their side.

"Kisame…" A voice made the Akatsuki member halt his advances. He was in the room now. The man with the shark-like appearance turned his head to the door. "Control yourself." A man stepped into the room.

This got double the reaction from Sasuke. The young Uchiha let out gasp at the sight of the other male. Naruto was quick to become aware of this. He looked back and forth from Sasuke to the man. He noticed that the man had Sharingan eyes just like Sasuke. His eyes expanded. _"Is this him…?! The one… Uchiha Itachi…?!"_ Sasuke clenched his fists at his sides. He glared at the man that he used to call brother. _"Oh, yeah… There is definitely some animosity going on."_ Naruto's eyes grew when he realized that his other teammate was gone. _"Wait a minute…! Where did she go?!"_ He saw her crouched down. She held a finger to her lips, telling him to keep quiet. Naruto's eyes focused on the two visitors again. He gulped, feeling a bit apprehensive. According to Sasuke, this was the man that single-handedly wiped out an entire clan.

Kisame sighed in disappointment before putting Samehada over his shoulder. "To think that this brat actually has Kyuubi inside him! The very thought is laughable!" Naruto gapped at the men. Only a few people knew of the demon inside him. How the heck did this guy find out? Itachi moved until he was by his partner's side. For a few tense moments, no one moved. No one spoke out. The blond gulped. The mood was suffocating.

"Naruto-kun, you are coming with us." If the atmosphere was tense before, it was definitely tensed after the older Uchiha spoke again.

That was it. That was the last straw! Mayu shot up from her hiding place. The sudden movement drew in the attention of everyone in the room. She slowly walked toward her teammates. She stood in front of them as if she was protecting them. Her head was bowed, so the newcomers really couldn't see her face. "Naruto won't go with you. I'm not going to let you take him!"

"And who are you, exactly?" Kisame grinned at the girl's brave aura. She was a fool. The kunoichi lifted her head, revealing angry blue eyes.

"Ishikari Mayu!" Itachi's eyes widen a fraction. This did not go unnoticed by Sasuke or Mayu. "So you remember me then, huh?" The kunoichi narrowed her eyes. "Well, isn't that just nice, Uchiha Itachi."

"It's… been a long time, Mayu-chan."

A burst of chakra, alerted everyone of the fact that Sasuke activated his bloodline. The young Uchiha stood beside his teammate. "Who do you think you are? You've got no right to call her that after what you've done!" Kisame grinned as his eyes scrutinized the smaller Uchiha.

"_Hm_… He has the Sharingan, and his very similar to you." His eyes shifted over to Mayu. "And this girl—it appears as if she knows you, Itachi-san. Who are they?"

"He is my little brother… and she is a childhood friend." The older Uchiha's response only the two in question glare hard at him.

The grin never left the Akatsuki member's face. "I heard that the entire Uchiha clan was killed… by you." Sasuke clenched his teeth, trying to snarl.

"Uchiha Itachi!" His teeth grind together. "You'd better be prepared to die! It's just like you said… I hated you, detested you! And just to kill you-" His Chidori formed in the palm of his hand. "-I have survived!"

_**BAM**_!

Just like that, Uchiha Sasuke hunched over, holding his stomach. His attack had vanished. Naruto stared wide-eyed. "M-Mayu… What the hell did you do that for?!" The pissed Uchiha glared at his teammate. She had punched him hard.

"Not that I don't believe in you, or Naruto, or myself… but on our own, we don't stand a chance." The kunoichi kept her eyes on the two enemies. "We can't fight them ourselves." Kisame's chuckles filled the room. Sasuke straightened up.

"So you're going to run away, are you?" he asked. "Do you think you'll get very far?" Mayu released a chuckle of her own.

"Run away…?" she repeated. She performed hand signs. "As if I would! **Ishikari Style: Mind Transfer Jutsu**!"

"Kisame…!" The shark man turned to his partner, never hearing that tone in his voice before. But merely saying his name had not been enough. The two bodies went limp. Seconds later, a pale blue hand clenched the hilt of the Samehada. The large sword was swung around, almost hitting Itachi. The man, knowing it was coming, jumped up in order not to be hit.

"What the…?" Naruto only watched in amazement. The big guy just started attacking his own comrade. Eyes wide, he finally got it. He hurriedly put Mayu in a chokehold, causing the kunoichi to literally choke.

"Wh-What the hell is going on, Itachi-san?! What did she do?!"

Also realizing what was going on, Sasuke kicked her feet from under her, causing her to fall with Naruto on top. Out of the corner of his eye, Itachi saw this happening. In the meantime, he was still dodging the Samehada's strikes. He quickly moved outside in the hallway. Mayu, in Kisame's body, followed after him. "A nuisance…" Itachi moved back to put space between himself and his presumed comrade.

"You bet your ass I am." Sharp teeth were displayed. Kisame's body crouched down. The Samehada was in a position to attack. The eyes took a glance in the room. _"Even with this body, he is still stronger! I have to get these two as far away from us as possible!"_

"That won't work. You want to protect your new friends, don't you, Mayu-chan?" Itachi's voice caused Kisame's body to flinch. "I won't leave until I have Naruto-kun in my possession."

"Naruto's not some _thing_ you can just pick up!" Samehada was pointed at him. "Just because he holds Kyuubi doesn't make him any different from anyone else. Did you lose your heart when you killed everyone? Are you even the same man I looked up to?!" The last question came out as a shout as she attacked him again.

Itachi hurriedly took out two kunai. He placed them in an 'X' position, successfully stopping the Samehada from coming down on him. He stared into his comrade's eyes, aware of the tears falling from them. "Despite all that-" The Uchiha realized that Kisame's true strength wasn't being used. "Despite what you did… I still…" Itachi kicked at the feet. Mayu lost her balance and fell forward. The older Uchiha kneed his opponent in the face. He disappeared, only to reappear behind her. Several kicks forced her forward. A final kick from Itachi sent her to the ground.

Sharp teeth clamped together in frustration. "You're a bother. Get out of the body." Mayu turned and glared at the man. "_Now_, Mayu!" Despite the situation, she flinched. Itachi ever hardly raised his voice. She opened the mouth that did not belong to her. But before she could speak, the three came tumbling out of the room.

"He won't stay down!" Naruto struggled to keep Mayu's body in a chokehold. Sasuke was trying to confine the arms and legs. How the three were still standing, the kunoichi had yet to figure it out. But it did look as if they were having a hard time. Besides that fact, she could only hold onto this mind for so long.

"Oi…! You better give me back my body, bi-"

"Kisame."

The Akatsuki member, in the body of a child, sighed. It was more than humiliating to be stuck in some girl's body. He was so glad the others hadn't been here. He would have never heard the end of it. Mayu, once again, clenched the hilt in hands that did not belong to her. She raced passed her teammates, raising the Samehada over her head. Itachi narrowed his eyes and shifted his foot, awaiting the impact. However, Kisame's body suddenly jumped. It appeared as if it was going to tackle the opponent. The older Uchiha jerked just as it seemed he would be hit. "Release…!" The limp body unceremoniously fell to the floor near Itachi's feet.

"You can let me up now!" Mayu struggled against her teammates' hold.

"How do we know you're really her? You could be faking!"

"What?! It's me! How else would I know that you, Naruto, like to dress up as a girl and spank yourself with a hockey stick?" Sasuke looked toward his male teammate, freaked out by that tidbit of information.

"I DON'T DO THAT!"

"… Yeah, but only I would say something like that, right?"

The two shinobi blinked. That was actually… logical. They released her and turned to face their enemies. By this time, Kisame had stood. His entire body was shaking. "I… am going to attack you now, I don't know when I'll stop." He slowly walked toward the team, creating a sense of fear and uneasiness. The three stood, frozen in place. There seemed to be nothing they could do at the moment. "Jinchuuriki or not, I'm taking your arms and legs away."

"Wait a minute!" The kunoichi's shout actually made Kisame stop his advancing. He was now only a few feet away. "… Dude… you can _cry_? But you've got no eyelids, right?" Her teammates fell out of place, and so did the Akatsuki member. Itachi's lips twitched because of her question. Luckily, no one saw because of the large collar. But then again, they were also too busy staring at Mayu as if she had one too many pills.

"What type of question is that to ask someone who is trying to _kill_ us?!" Naruto yelled.

"You, all of you, except him-" Kisame pointed a finger at the blond. "-Die right here, right now!" He swung his Samehada down.

It appeared as if the three were dead, but suddenly a cloud of smoke covered them. Kisame made a noise of confusion. It didn't feel as if his attack hit soft flesh. It actually sounded like it had hit something hard. The smoke dissipated, revealing a large toad with armor. The orange and blue-marked amphibian was holding off the large sword. "You two don't know me very well…" Sasuke and Mayu turned their head. The Sanin had finally showed up. Over his shoulder, he was carrying the woman that he winked at him earlier. "Jiraiya the man… is better at winning a girl… than being seduced by one. I wouldn't let a woman seduce me with her beauty." Naruto turned to him as well. All eyes were now on Jiraiya, and that's the way he liked it. "When you become a great man like me, woman will go crazy over your own beauty!"

"Quit it with the theatrics, already!" Mayu shouted, pointing a finger. "We were almost shark food because you saw a pretty lady!"

"Give me a break! You went all crazy over one wink for her!" Naruto also pointed.

"You probably realized it was all a trick when you actually started to think with your brain because no beautiful woman would ever look at you twice!" Sasuke also put in his two cents.

"Pervy Sage…" the three murmured.

"Hey, really, don't call me that in front of people…"

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Finished June 12, 2009

The conclusion will continue in the next chapter!

Next time: _Sibling Rivalry_!


	19. Sibling Rivalry!

Kisame suddenly released an amused chuckle. This action caused the three genin and Sanin to move their attention to the Akatsuki member, who greatly resembled a shark. "He is the famous Jiraiya-sama, who was praised as one of the legendary Sanin, after all." The grin on his face sent chills up Mayu's spine. "Even if you are an extreme lover of women... I knew that we couldn't hold you off that easily."

"_So they know who he is...?"_ Naruto clenched his fists. Just how much did they know?

"Well, that's not really my true identity or whatnot... Don't listen to anything these brats might have said." Jiraiya chuckled nervously as if he was embarrassed. His group shot him dirty looks. The toad sage shifted and set the woman against the wall. She was unconscious by the looks of it. Sasuke glanced at the two for a moment before his eyes returned to his brother. His teeth clamped together as he continued to stare.

"It seems you have dispelled the genjutsu that woman was under." Kisame seemed to find this whole amusing for some reason. For a moment, no one uttered a word. Jiraiya turned and glared at the blue-skinned man. Kisame only found his fierce expression entertaining. "Are you upset now?"

"What kinda coward would do something like that?"

"What kinda idiot would _fall_ for something like that?" Mayu couldn't help but muttered. Her remark was ignored, although, the Sanin's eye did twitch a bit... Cheeky little brat, he thought.

"Using your eye to cast an illusion on an innocent woman all to separate me from Naruto." He continued as if he had never heard what the kunoichi said. Jiraiya stood up and faced the two Akatsuki members. "I know you are after him and him alone." Naruto's eyes expanded in surprise. He couldn't understand why people were after him. He didn't know either one of the two, so why…?

"No wonder Kakashi-san knew." The older Uchiha remained pokerfaced as he spoke. This only pissed a couple of his enemies off for different reasons. "I see now. You are the source." Jiraiya did not reply to his statement. "It is an urgent order by our organization, Akatsuki, to take Naruto-kun with us." The blond shinobi involuntarily took a step back. Somehow, he still didn't get it… After Itachi spoke, no one made a sound. They were all in a tense silence. It was amazing how saying a few words can drastically change the mood.

Mayu swallowed hard. She knew that it was only a matter of time before the older Uchiha said something that would cause a chain reaction. She glanced at her teammate out of the corner of her eye. Sasuke was bound to snap at any given moment. _"What am I going to do…?"_ The kunoichi could feel her heart beating quickly in her chest. _"Do I just let what happened originally happen now…? But then Sasuke will…"_

The summoned toad, which was holding off Kisame's sword, suddenly disappeared, leaving behind a large cloud of smoke. Naruto's fingers twitched, realizing that there was nothing left between him and the large tampon-looking sword. "I can't hand Naruto over to you." Jiraiya's voice was stern and unyielding. The blond shinobi was actually impressed, yet knew it wasn't the time for praising. Itachi, far from amazed, narrowed his eyes.

"We'll see about that," he said.

"Very well, I will get rid of the two of you right here, right now," Jiraiya proclaimed.

Sasuke stepped forward. "No…" His fingers curled. His eyes remained focused on Itachi. "Don't interfere with this." His teammates, including Jiraiya, looked his way, not really surprised by his words. "The one who will kill Itachi—the one who will kill him… is _me_!" All was quiet as the others let his words sink in.

"Sasuke…" Naruto murmured. _"This is… his revenge…?"_ His blue eyes shifted over to his female teammate. She still had her eyes on the younger Uchiha. _"So then Mayu also wants this?"_ The blond ninja blinked when Mayu placed a hand on Sasuke's shoulder.

The younger Uchiha looked back at his teammate. She had unknowingly snapped him out of his vengeful state. He had nearly forgotten anyone else was there. Mayu surprisingly wore a smile. "What you say might be true. You, in the future, just might end up taking his life. But right now, you can't. You can't touch him."

"What?! What is this?" Sasuke glared angrily at his teammate. "Are you questioning my strength?! Are you doubting me?!"

"_Um_… no…" Mayu looked at him as if he was an idiot. "You _physically_ can't touch him. I don't know if you've noticed, but there's big, blue shark in the way, and he's got a sword. I just think that that obstacle is a little hard to get pass, that's all I'm saying."

Sasuke stared at her for a full minute. For a brief moment, he wondered how her mind processed things. Of course he knew that his brother's comrade was in the way. He wasn't an idiot! The Uchiha mentally rolled his eyes. But she did bring up a valid point. Although, he knew the man was there, he didn't really believe that he would stop him from getting to his brother. The younger Uchiha turned back to his enemies, shrugging the hand off his shoulder. "Fine," he said. "Back me up then." Mayu gave a two-finger salute.

"Roger…!"

"Easier said than done." He slung Samehada over his shoulder. Mayu grinned because of his actions.

"Bad move!" The kunoichi quickly formed hand signs. She jumped in front of her teammate as Kisame's eyes grew. "**Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu**!" A fireball, almost as wide as the hallway, emanated from the girl's mouth. Despite its size, the ball of fire moved slowly toward the Akatsuki member. Kisame grinned, seeing his advantage.

"You'll need more than that to take me on!" He also performed a couple hand signs. "**Water Style: Water Shark Bomb Jutsu**!" A beam of water shot from his mouth. In the shape of a shark, the water torpedoed toward the fireball. The two elemental attacks collided, causing steam to appear. The mist covered the entire hallway, making it hard to see. The younger Uchiha had to smirk as he made his move.

Finally, the haze began to fade. "Eh…?" Kisame's eyes narrowed. The two brats had disappeared from his line of vision. He growled as he turned around. The two genin were now standing at the end of the hallway. He was a bit pissed that the two had managed to actually get pass. "You used the collision of the attacks as a cover, eh?" Regardless of being peeved, Kisame smirked. He had to give credit where credit was due. "How clever…"

The kunoichi put a hand on her hip. "It's all about predicting your opponent's next move." Her eyes moved over to the older Uchiha. "Isn't that right, Itachi?" The man did not respond. Beside her, Sasuke had yet to speak. His Sharingan eyes were focused on his brother, looking for any openings. From his vantage point, there were none. He gritted his teeth in frustration. There had been none, but with a few surprise attacks, he might be able to get through his defenses. He took one glance at his teammate. She would definitely follow him into the fire. After all, they were the same. "Have we gotten your attention?"

Mayu knew that they were no match for him. She knew it. Itachi was on a whole different level from them. Back when they used to have 'friendly' spars, she hardly ever laid a hit on him. Most of the time, she would be the one with the bruises—unless, of course, they were wrestling with one another… Itachi may have been a genius, but he sucked when it came to brawling on the ground. _"Duh…! That's it!"_ She clenched her fists. _"Very risky, but it'll have to do."_ The kunoichi only hoped her teammate would do what he was supposed to.

Itachi finally turned to face the two genin. The same vacant expression remained on his face. "Foolish," he finally spoke. He stepped forward. "Very well then… Come."

"You're going to regret that!" Sasuke suddenly charged at his older brother, forcing his teammate to do the same. The younger Uchiha reared his fist back as he got closer. Mayu saw this, and did the same. Sasuke launched his fist forward. The kunoichi, however, switched her form of attack. She shifted her upper body down, moving into a hand stand. Her feet made contact with Itachi's arm seconds after Sasuke's fist hit his other arm. The older Uchiha had successfully blocked their attacks.

Suddenly, Sasuke's body turned into a pillow. Itachi moved and grabbed a hold of Mayu's ankle. He swung her around to hit the boy that he knew was behind him. But to his surprise, the girl went right through the clone of his brother. Mayu, using his surprise to her advantage, twirled her body, forcing him to release her ankle. The Uchiha brought his arm up to block before the kunoichi's other leg kicked him in the head. She flipped away from him, only to try to kick his legs from underneath him by turning her leg. Itachi merely jumped away from her. "**Fire Style: Phoenix Fire Jutsu**!" The Uchiha maneuvered his body to avoid the flames that came from behind him. Once the flames died, Itachi planted his feet on the floor near Sasuke. The younger of the two back of, surprised. He didn't give him a chance to defend. Itachi backhanded him. The strength behind the hit sent Sasuke soaring. The younger Uchiha's back hit the wall.

"Sasuke…!"

The kunoichi raced at her opponent with a fierce glare on her face. Itachi turned and dodged the barrage of punches that the girl dealt. Becoming bored by it, he grabbed her wrist. Surprised, Mayu froze. His other hand shot out and wrapped around her throat. The Uchiha slammed her against the wall. The kunoichi released a pained gasp. Not only did her back hurt, but her head had also hit the wall. It hurt so much that she could feel the ringing in her ears. She was barely aware that Naruto had screamed her name. But she did feel her opponent release her wrist.

Her eyes expanded, seeing the oncoming punch Itachi was about to deliver to her abdomen. Her arms moved to stop it. The Uchiha's eyes widen a fraction had the sudden transformation the kunoichi had gone through. Her hair had changed from black to dark blue. Her skin had changed to a pale blue color—exactly like his partner's skin. Even her eyes changed. They looked just like Kisame's eyes. Itachi narrowed his eyes, realizing his punched had been blocked. And no matter how hard he pushed against the girl's hands, his fist would not go any further.

Mayu grinned, revealing sharp teeth. She gripped Itachi's fist and wrist with her hands. "Sasuke!" Right before her eyes, a kunai sliced through the man's arm. Itachi moved back away from his severed arm, only to pop out of existence. The arm soon followed. "Damn it!" Mayu dropped to the floor. Sasuke swung his arm around and launched the projectile at his brother, who had appeared behind him. Itachi moved further away, and then deflected the weapon with a shuriken. "He's so fast!" Sasuke stood next to his teammate with a glare.

"What's with this makeover of yours?" he asked. Mayu had to resist rolling her eyes as she explained the effects of Ishikari jutsu. "So… you're like him now?" His teammate nodded. "Then start acting like it!"

"Whatever you say!"

The two rushed at Itachi again. The older Uchiha evaded their attacks with ease. He realized that it was a waste of time doing this. He would have to finish it now. Itachi hand went out to grab Sasuke's collar. The younger Uchiha saw this and leaned back. As he did so, his hands came up and grabbed his brother's wrist. He quickly wrapped one leg around Itachi's arm, and then brought his other leg up. His heel rammed into his opponent's chin.

Momentarily stunned, Itachi staggered back. Sasuke released the arm and dropped into a hand stand. His hands crossed as his leg hooked around his brother's neck. Using his body's momentum, he slammed Itachi against the wall. Several of the spectators gapped at what they had just witnessed. "**Water Style: Water Shark Bomb Jutsu**!" Water, in the form of a shark, gushed from Mayu's open mouth. The shark slammed into the Uchiha, pinning him against the wall. Itachi's form faltered and slowly started to fall over from the impact. Mayu's body turned back to normal. The two ninja stared down at the crumbled body. They began the proper hand signs. A blue flame appeared in Mayu's hand, while lightning appeared in Sasuke's.

"This is the end for you!" Sasuke reared his arm back, and Mayu did the same. The two released a battle cry as their arms moved forward.

An image flashed through their minds.

Mere inches away from his body, the two attacks—Chidori and Tsukeru—halted. The owners of these two attacks were frozen, eyes wide. Their attacks slowly diminished. The two remained in their attacking positions, confusing their audience. "I see…" Itachi—the real one—appeared behind the two. They turned only to receive a punch to their torsos. The two hunched over, gasping at the pain. Itachi, however, did not stop. He elbowed the two in the back, only to knee them in the gut.

"_Why…?"_ Sasuke felt knuckles against his cheek.

"_Why…?"_ Mayu felt the swift upper-cut, causing her head to spring back.

Itachi finally allowed the two to drop to the floor. Although he had only hit their faces and upper bodies, it hurt all over. _"Why did I hesitate?!"_ The two trembled lightly, letting that thought echo in their minds. Sasuke closed his eyes, gritting his teeth. He was aware that his brother had grabbed and slammed him against the wall, as well as Mayu, and yet he couldn't feel anymore. _"Nothing has changed…"_ Sasuke slowly lifted his head. His brother still wore the same unemotional look. He had been truly bored, hadn't he? He took a glance out of the corner of his eye. Mayu still had not lifted her head. He also noticed that the clone of Itachi returned to its original form—water.

"Together-" Itachi's voice got Sasuke's attention. "-You two are as strong as my water clone. But compared to me, you are weak." His fingers tighten, causing the two to let out groans of pain. "Why are you still so weak? I see it now. You lack… hatred." He told them as if it was a secret. Finally, Mayu lifted her head. Blood ran down her chin.

"Hatred…? That's what makes a person strong?" Her lip quaked. Tears began falling out of her eyes. "Is that what made you strong?" The Uchiha closed his eyes. "Did you truly _hate_ us? Your own siblings…?" Itachi slowly opened his eyes again. "Weasel man… I always thought of you as a brother, and… I always will." Itachi quickly shut his eyes and frowned. He seemed to be thinking about something. Finally, he opened his eyes before slamming the two genin to the floor.

Their shouts of pain were like torture for the blond shinobi. He balled up his fist and growled angrily. "That's it…! I've had it! Let them go, you bastard!" Naruto dashed toward the end of the hall. He wanted nothing more than to tear the older Uchiha limb from limb. He was completely unaware that Kisame was chasing after him. His blue eyes watched as the man, Uchiha Itachi, turned his head slightly. Naruto did not care that he had saw him. He just wanted to beat the crap out of him. But before he could reach him, something made him stop. He looked around in surprise. The entire hallway was being covered with a sick, slimly looking material. "What's this…?"

"**Ninja Art: Toad Mouth Trap**." Naruto looked back at Jiraiya. The Sanin had his hands pressed against the floor. He wore a confident smirk. Itachi slowly stepped away from the genin. He, too, stared back at Jiraiya. Kisame looked at down his foot in surprise. The slimy substance was wrapping around his foot, trapping him where he stood. "You're out of luck, Itachi, Kisame. You're inside a stomach now."

"WHAT?!" Mayu suddenly stood up. "We're inside _what _now?!" A grimace appeared on her face as a hand clutched her abdomen. "Okay, no quick movements…"

"Oi…! Don't move a muscle!" Jiraiya called out. Sasuke moved to his knees. "Didn't I just say don't move?" The toad sage sighed and muttered something about brats. "I summoned the esophagus of a gigantic frog from the Myouboku Mountain's rock inn. You two are wanted criminals anyway. I'll turn you two into food for this rock frog." Kisame growled, while Itachi did not respond. "You three, I'll tell you again, don't move." The three genin gave him worried looks. "Don't worry, this is my jutsu."

"Kisame… come." Itachi moved away, and then took off down the hall. His comrade struggled to get his sword and himself free. Finally, he pulled himself out and rushed pass Naruto. Sasuke and Mayu watched him follow Itachi.

"It's useless!" The Sanin chuckled. "There's not a ninja alive who has ever escaped this stomach." The two Akatsuki members did not pay any attention to his statement. They continued running until they were out of sight. The four remained still, waiting for the inevitable. Suddenly, there was the sound of a loud explosion. It shook the very building. Jiraiya's eyes grew as doubts began to fill his head. He stood, and ran, going the same direction that the two Akatsuki members had gone. Seconds later, Naruto followed after him.

Mayu dropped down to her knees. She released shuddering breaths. She swallowed hard, trying to get her breathing under control. The kunoichi laughed a humorless laugh. "When did he become such an A-hole?" Sasuke didn't reply. "What's wrong with me…? Even though it ended up being a clone, I hesitated. Even after all he did, I hesitated." Her teammate finally relaxed his body. He slowly sighed.

"You're not the only one." He pulled his collar down. Already, bruises were starting to form. "For some reason, I saw his younger self and he was smiling. I stopped before I-" The Uchiha suddenly squeezed his eyes shut. "He's right! I _am_ still weak! I don't hate him enough!"

"Don't listen to him, Sasuke." Her arms wrapped around him, causing the shinobi to flinch. "Hatred can't make us stronger, no matter how bad we want it. I think it would only make us weaker. Having rage and hatred in battle will only be our downfall." Sasuke frowned. He lightly touched the kunoichi's arm.

"Mayu…" Before he could continue, the flesh began to pull back, revealing the normal walls of the inn. The kunoichi removed her arms from around her teammate and stood. Sasuke slowly did the same. "Anything broken?"

"Just my pride and ego. I think he went easy on us. _God_—what an insult…!" The Uchiha nodded his head in agreement. "… As we are now, we're out of his league. We have to train ourselves even harder than what I first thought, or we'll never catch up to him."

The sound of someone running caught there attention. Within seconds, Naruto was in there faces, _screaming_ if they were okay. Sasuke was quick to knock him over the head. The blond glared as he rubbed his head. "We're probably going to have a lot of bruises. Besides the soreness that'll come tomorrow, we're fine." The Uchiha rubbed his shoulder as he spoke. He winced when his fingers came into contact with tender skin.

Naruto looked back and forth between his two teammates. They were trying to soothe their sore bodies. He looked down at the floor, feeling a sudden sense of guilt. "Sorry…" He balled up his fingers. "Sorry I wasn't much help. I didn't help you guys at all."

"There's nothing to be sorry for," Sasuke replied. "I told you not to interfere. Mayu's just hard-headed." Ignoring his last comment, the kunoichi nodded her head.

"Yeah, Naruto, if you got involved, it would have most likely turned out much worse. Maybe we would have actually hit the real Itachi, but his retaliation would have been more brutal. Chances are we'd all be unconscious." Mayu tapped his nose. "So don't fret over nothing, okay?" Naruto slowly nodded his head. "Although, I'm kinda mad that he's so damn fast. It's annoying! I didn't even get to use his weakness!"

"Weakness…?! You know his weakness?!"

"And you… don't?" The glare she got caused her to sigh heavily. "Honestly, you're his brother, and you don't know? Wrestling, Sasuke—he sucks at it."

"Wrestling…?" The Uchiha blinked with a frown. He stared at the floor in thought. "Now that I think about it… Those _were_ the only times I made him say uncle…"

"So you did wrestle with him before?" Mayu grinned. "He's such a drama queen, isn't he?" Sasuke nodded his head and crossed his arms.

"It was only a couple of times, but he freaked whenever I bested him. Hell, mom could even do it at times. He threatened that if we ever told anyone—especially father—that he would disown the clan and never come back home." The Uchiha scoffed and sighed. "Back when he was normal, it was funny."

"That guy was _normal_?!" Naruto incredulously asked.

"Well, no one is born an asshole," Sasuke stated.

"Hey, I hate to interrupt your stroll down memory lane, but we have to talk." The three genin turned their eyes to Jiraiya. He had finally walked over to them. "Not to sound like a downer, but I thought you two would be a little more upset."

"Make no mistake, Jiraiya-sama. We're pretty 'upset,' but what can we do as we are? There's really only one thing _to_ do, and that's get stronger for the next confrontation. Besides, it's not like we can go after him now. We're tired," Mayu said. "Right, Sasuke?" The Uchiha nodded. Jiraiya's eye twitched.

"_I think… they might be the laziest avengers I've ever met…" _Jiraiya shook his head.

Suddenly, a kunai embedded itself into the wall. All eyes instantly turned to the weapon, completely missing the man in the air until it was too late. "**Dynamic Entry**!" Poor Jiraiya was kicked in the face by his own comrade. Gai chuckled, but then realized who exactly he kicked. The five ninja remained in an awkward silence for a few moments. Mayu chortled, causing Jiraiya's head to snap in her direction with a glare. Blood ran down his nose, and his cheek was pink. This time, Naruto snickered. The Sanin twitched and flexed his fingers, daring them to laugh again.

"D-Dynamic En-Entry! He-He sai-said Dynamic Entry! As-As if his entran-entrance was dy-dy-_dynamic_!" Mayu and Naruto exploded in a fit of laughter. Sasuke shook his head and smirked. "Man, this guy's some Sanin, right?!"

"It hu-hurts to lau-laugh…!" The kunoichi fell to the floor holding her stomach.

"Damn brats…" Jiraiya discreetly stuffed a bit of tissue of his nose.

Gai chuckled nervously as he rubbed the back of his head. He tried to apologize, but the toad sage only became offended. The taijutsu specialist coughed, trying to change the subject. The laughter had finally faded away. "Anyway… Judging by the damage, I'd say you encountered Uchiha Itachi, right?" The four nodded. "In was in the village before then. He got Kakashi with some type of genjutsu. My eternal rival is now unconscious."

"_Kakashi-sensei…?!"_ Naruto almost couldn't believe. _"That guy really is strong…"_

"The medics say that they don't know how long he'll be in that state," Gai continued frowning. "In times like these…" An image of his fallen student appeared in his mind. He looked toward the floor. "In times like these, we need a medical specialist—a master of healing arts."

"You're right… And the woman you're referring to is the very same woman that we're looking for," Jiraiya stated. All heads turned to him in question. The toad Sanin smirked at their curious gazes. "Yes, she is another of the Legendary Sanin. She is the queen of slugs and elixirs."

"_Slugs…?" _Mayu grimaced at the thought.

"The gambling fool and the mistress of the healing arts—she is Lady Tsunade!"

"Someone sure sounds excited," Mayu flatly replied.

"She must be one heck of a babe," Sasuke said.

"That's about the _only_ thing that gets him motivated," Naruto agreed with a nod of his head.

"I _can_ hear you!"

--

The five ninja stood outside the entrance of the lodging village. They had rested for a few hours due to the two injured genin. Also, they could not leave the village until the damages that were done were paid for. Jiraiya had cursed the 'brats' for having to pay for all the damages. "I'm heading off to the village now to give my report." Gai stared intently at the Sanin. "Please bring Lady Tsunade to the village. We're on counting on you!"

"Don't worry about it! We'll bring her back in no time!" Naruto gave a determined nod. Mayu let a small smile cross her visage. Sasuke just looked bored. He shoved his hands in his pockets. He just wanted to get moving already. The sooner they left, the sooner he could start training again. Besides, this town was officially a place where bad memories surfaced.

"Naruto, nothing impresses me more than guts, kid." He reached into his vest. "Come here. Let me give you this. Lee got stronger with this." The blond ninja instantly got excited. Sasuke also turned his head, wondering what it could be. Rock Lee was definitely a strong person. His taijutsu skills far surpassed anyone in their age group. Sasuke was sure that he could even give Hyuga Neji a run for his money. He raised a curious eyebrow as Gai pulled the object out.

He was almost instantly disappointed.

Sasuke twitched at seeing the monstrosity. Gai had pulled out that horrendous, green spandex that he and Lee just loved to wear. The Uchiha shuddered at the thought of Naruto wearing something as… _loud_ as that. His teammate was loud enough as it is. He respected Lee as a fighter and would kill to be as strong, but there was no way he would ever be caught in that… _thing_! The only thing that spandex did for Lee was make him look dorky. A giggle mad him turn to his other teammate. He was more than surprised to see a blush on her face. Her eyes were locked on Gai, who was now walking away, waving. He resisted the urge to shudder again.

"What the hell are you thinking about?"

"Oh nothing…!" The kunoichi grinned. "Just wondering… Lee-kun and Gai-sensei are awesome taijutsu users. Couldn't help but wonder how much muscle they have underneath that spandex."

"… That… has got to be the sickest thing I've ever heard you say." Sasuke gave her a flat look. Mayu only shrugged.

"Guys aren't the only ones who appreciate a good-looking body!" She grinned and winked. The Uchiha nearly rolled his eyes. "You're just jealous that you're not as hot." Before Sasuke could stammer out a protest, Mayu was already walking away. "Let's get this show on the road!" She shot a fist in the air, completely ignoring the glare she was getting.

The group of four walked at a leisured pace. According to Jiraiya, there was really not a big rush. Apparently, he still had more information to collect on the sightings of Lady Tsunade. Mayu hummed while she walked. Every so often, she would feel the soreness of her body and curse Itachi under her breath. But other than that, the group was silent. Naruto suddenly stopped walking, drawing the attention of his teammates and current sensei. "What's the matter with you?" Sasuke blinked in confusion. It wasn't often that his blond teammate had a contemplative look on his face.

"I was just… What did they want with me, anyway?" Naruto looked at Jiraiya to answer his question. "I've been thinking about it since those two left, and I still don't know. What exactly is Akatsuki? I've never heard of it before." Sasuke also turned to the old man, wondering the same. He had never heard of a group called Akatsuki before either. This group, his brother, and Naruto were connected somehow… but why? What did his brother have to do with Naruto, a ninja he has never met before?

Jiraiya glanced at the other two ninja apart of the group. There was a chance they had no idea what their teammate was hosting inside of him. He would have to be cautious with how he answered. "Naruto, they don't exactly want _you_." The blond shinobi let out a perplexed noise. "What they really want is…" He trailed off as his eyes slowly moved down and focused on Naruto's stomach. The blond genin quickly got the hint. Sasuke and Mayu followed Jiraiya's gaze.

"They want… Kyuubi…?" Sasuke turned his eyes back to a surprised Jiraiya.

"You told them?"

"Well, yeah… They're my teammates. They have a right to know." Naruto nodded his head in confirmation. The toad sage slowly nodded. "So they want this demon? What for…? It terrorized our village, and that's why everyone's afraid of it. Why do they want something like this so bad?" Naruto unconsciously rubbed his stomach.

"The Kyuubi is known for his strength and immense chakra." Sasuke turned back to his teammate. "In your fight with Gaara, you suddenly let loose more chakra than a genin should have, right?" It wasn't a question. "When all your chakra was gone, you used the Kyuubi's chakra to summon the Chief Toad, Gamabunta. If Itachi is apart of it-" The Uchiha narrowed his eyes. "-They want the power. They probably want to harness and use it."

"But then again… that's just a theory," Mayu said. "Their true reason could be completely unfounded. But right now, it's the best thing I could think of as to why they want Kyuubi. Don't worry about all that, though, Naruto!" She grinned, and then flicked his cheek. "With us by your side, they definitely won't get you." The blond ninja returned the grin.

"Worried? I'm not worried! All I have to do is get stronger! I'll have those Akatsuki bastards running with their tails between their legs! You just wait!" He clenched his fist. The anxiety had almost completely disappeared from his mind. "Let's hurry up and find this Tsunade woman so she can heal Kakashi-sensei! Then we finally start on some serious training!"

"That's the Naruto I'm used to!"

"Finally, let's get going. You're not the only one who needs to train," Sasuke stated. Mayu and Naruto nodded in agreement.

"_These kids are something else…"_ Jiraiya thought, smiling.

--

"Wow…!" Naruto looked around in awe. "I've never seen so many stands!" Jiraiya chuckled at his exuberance. "This is gonna be awesome!"

"Downtime is important, so you should have some fun before we start your training." The Sanin turned to the three genin. "This festival will be going on for awhile. We'll stay here until it's over, and then we'll start your training here, too." Naruto, of course, shouted in glee.

"Well, this is the part where we split up!" The males turned toward the kunoichi in surprise. "I'm going to eat, shop, and then start training. We can meet up later on in the day."

"What? But I thought we were going to train together!" Naruto pouted.

"We are, but I'm pretty sure Jiraiya-sama's training is for you alone, so for the time being, Sasuke and I are on our own." The kunoichi turned and began to walk away. "We'll meet up on the outskirts of town." She waved. "See ya!" Mayu took off into the crowd before her teammates could protest any further.

Sasuke sighed heavily. "Jeez… What's with her making decisions like that on her own…?" He turned to Naruto. "Well, I'm leaving, too. Don't spend too much, dobe." The Uchiha walked off, leaving Jiraiya and his teammate alone. He walked through the crowds, occasionally stopping when something caught his eye. He walked on, however, because his stomach was growling. He needed something to eat and fast. The young Uchiha moved over to a food stand. "One large order of stuffed tomatoes, please," he told the vendor. The man nodded and said that it would take a few minutes. While he waited, he could help but think about his past encounter. _"Mayu…"_

_Weasel man… I always thought of you as a brother, and… I always will._

_"Was my reason for hesitation the same as hers…?"_ Sasuke frowned with his eyes on the ground. _"Even after what he did, do I still think of him as my brother?" _The same image, that caused him to stop before, appeared in his head again. He gritted his teeth. It couldn't be. He hated Itachi. Since he killed everyone! He had hated him with unwavering malice. Or… so he thought… Deep down—he knew that—Mayu still loved Itachi. But what about himself? Sasuke shook his head. _"I don't…! What he did is inexcusable!"_

"Here ya go, kid!" The vendor held out a plastic container with three large stuffed tomatoes in it. Sasuke silently took it and handed the man the right amount of money. Before he left the stand, he politely thanked him. "No problem…!"'

As he walked, his eyes darted to and fro, looking at the various stands the festival had to offer. There were games, food, clothes, and shops everywhere. _"This festival must be a pretty big thing here."_ Sasuke stopped chewing for a moment. He blinked, and then swallowed. A large red sign had caught his attention. _"Mini weights…?"_ The Uchiha walked over to the stand. Laid out for people to see were circular objects, which looked similar to bracelets. They looked to be made of silver, but Sasuke knew that it could be only paint. Judging by the shape, he guessed that the bracelets could be snapped on to ankles or wrists. He experimentally picked one up, drawing the attention of the vendor. He narrowed his eyes before putting it back. It had been as light as a pencil.

Sasuke turned to go, a bit disappointed. A hand on his shoulder stopped him. "Wait a minute…!" He turned to see that it was the vendor that stopped him. "You look like a pretty good person! I'm only selling these to people that interest me." Sasuke shrugged the man's hand away.

"They're useless. They don't weigh a thing." He gave the man a flat look. "You can't sell them at all, can you?" The man chuckled nervously. He rubbed the back of his head. This kid could see right through him…

"That's only because people won't stick around long enough to hear how they work." This quickly captured the Uchiha's interest. He turned, fully intrigued. He raised a curious brow. The vendor gave a knowing smirk. "You're a ninja, right? All you have to do is force some chakra into this baby to make it heavy!" The man held a bracelet out to the Uchiha. "Test it out if you don't believe me!"

The shinobi did as he was told. He was more than surprised when his hand forcibly fell. The object dropped from his hand. The seller laughed out. "See…! I told you it worked!" Sasuke bent over to pick up the item. "The more juice you give it, the heavier it gets! Am I a genius or what?" He laughed again as if he was proud of this accomplishment.

"Hn…" Sasuke examined the almost weightless object. As far as he could tell, there was no jutsu on it. And it looked to be about the right size… "Twelve."

"What…?"

Sasuke glared up at the man. It was bad enough his teammates were idiots. Did everyone else have to be one, too? "Twelve," he repeated. "I want twelve of them." The man's eyes grew wide in shock. "Is that a problem…?" His dark eyes counted the number of bracelets on display. "I count eleven here, plus the one in my hand, making twelve."

"But… that's all I _have_… I assure you that just four is enough for one person! If you put more than that on your body, you could get hurt, kid!"

"Twelve…!" He repeated, taking out his wallet. The vendor sighed heavily and muttered 'fine' under his breath. Sasuke paid the man with interest, causing him to whoop in delight. The salesperson shoved the silver objects into the Uchiha's hands. "Thank you." He gave a curt nod, and then put all twelve items into his bag. _"This could beneficial…"_ Sasuke let a smirk pass across his face as he walked away.

--

Mayu tossed her wallet in the air with a grin. She caught it and hugged it fondly. "Garfield-kun, I can't believe how fat you still are even after my eating spree!" The shape of the wallet was the form of an orange tabby cat, hence why she called it Garfield. _"I'm so glad the Hokage let me keep the money I earned from those missions when I was in Sakura's body!"_ Her blue eyes moved left and right, hoping to find a clothing store. As she was now, she didn't have many outfits. In fact, she only had _two_! One outfit was for missions and such, while the other outfit was just was wearing. A gray T-shirt and black Capri pants was her lazy outfit. That's what she wore now since she had changed at the inn.

The kunoichi perked up when she saw a store that seemed to be selling many purple and blue articles of clothing. She walked into the store, and was instantly bombarded by a very flamboyant male. He had short dark hair that was cut just below his chin. It seemed to _shine_. His height looked equivalent to Kakashi's. She could only guess his age because she wasn't sure. He looked like a young adult, but she couldn't see his eyes on the count of him not opening them. She briefly wondered how he could see her. "My, my, my…! What do we have here?" His lovely voice only caused Mayu to blink. Guys shouldn't be this cute, she thought. "Looking for some new wear?" The kunoichi tentatively nodded her head. She was immediately whisked away by the man. "Good! I'm glad you came in because that look is not working for you, and I know a couple of outfits that would look perfect on you!"

Before she could question him, the man shoved her into a changing room. "Hey…! This is not cool, man!" Mayu's protest was cut short by clothes falling on her head. "This has got to be some form of harassment!" The girl's head popped out of the pile of clothes.

"Oh my…! It seems you are _quite_ upset! Trying on those clothes will make you feel so much better I'm sure!" Mayu grumbled and began separating the articles—pants, shorts, shirts, and… The kunoichi's eye twitched.

"Underwear…?" The pair of panties vanished from her hand.

"Whoops…! My wife would just kill me if she knew I took these from her again! I must find a way to destroy that mace…" The male's voice seemed to be fading. "Carry on, carry on!"

Mayu stood still for a moment. She then shrugged, deciding she didn't care. "I like these colors." She held up a shirt. "Better get started."

Several wardrobe changes later, Mayu once again stepped out of the changing room. She was tired. The male had been her own personal critic every time she stepped out. It was more than a little annoying. To him, everything she came out in was 'totally not you.' It pissed her off because she actually liked most of those outfits! The kunoichi crossed her arms. She cleared her throat, drawing the man's attention. "Well…?" Clearly, she was irritated. She had been in this store longer than anticipated. "It doesn't matter what you say, I'm getting this one, anywa-"

"My, my, quite aggravated, aren't we?" The man suddenly opened his eyes, revealing amethyst orbs. Mayu was quite surprised that her heart skipped several beats. The man's eyes closed again, making him appear cheery. "But I've got to say that _that_ is the outfit for you!"

"You… You really think so?" The kunoichi twirled around so he could it all. She had to admit that she liked this one best.

"Why of course!" The man clapped his hands once. "You just need a few accessories!" He pulled out a pair of gloves. "Put these on, and I'll be right back!" The salesman walked away, leaving Mayu to put the leather gloves on. They did look cool—she had always had a thing for fingerless gloves—but there was no point in wearing them. Tsukeru would probably burn right through them. The man popped out of nowhere, causing the kunoichi to jump in surprise. She definitely needed to train her senses. "Come with me." He led her to a room with three mirrors. Mayu gazed at her reflection. She had to agree. This outfit definitely worked. While it appeared cool, she could tell that the fabric was also durable, meaning she could wear it on missions.

The man suddenly untied her braid. Her hair fell freely. Through the looking glass, Mayu watched him tie a purple ribbon in her hair. The purple color matched the purple color on the apparel. "Wow…" Mayu placed a hand on her hip and grinned. "I look good for a thirteen year old."

"Yes, like I said, absolutely perfect for you! And the gloves are 100 percent fire proof!" Mayu turned to him.

"No way…!"

"Yes way! I'll even throw them and the ribbon in for free!"

"Awesome!" Mayu cheered. "How much?"

After the transaction was made, the kunoichi placed her old close in her bag. Mayu thanked the man and turned to go. Before exiting, she halted and turned her head slightly. The man looked up in question. "This has been bothering me since I saw you, but you look vaguely familiar to me." The man's eyebrow rose. "What is your name…?" The man smirked at her. He wagged a finger.

"That… is a secret!"

"… Riiight… I'm going to leave now. Bye…"

Mayu walked out, feeling better than she had. She had to admit that trying on clothes did make her feel good. She walked through the streets for awhile before coming to a stop. Her head turned to a particular stand. A man was passing out masks. A plan began formulating in her head. The kunoichi did not realize that a wicked grin spread across her face. She walked towards the vendor, chuckling.

--

Sasuke rolled on his back. He let out a sigh as his dark eyes stared up at the clouds. After effortlessly winning many games, he became bored and chose to head to the outskirts of town. He figured he would be the first one here. His two teammates were bound to become distracted by many things. It didn't really take much to please them. Sasuke had been here for awhile now. He had to be there for more than an hour. The young Uchiha took a glance at the large paper bag that was near him. It was full of stuffed animals, and other prizes that he had no use for. Another sigh escaped his lips as he closed his eyes. The genin stretched and yawned, and then locked his hands behind his head. He decided that a nap wouldn't hurt, and so the Uchiha began to drift off into dreamland.

"_Finally…!"_ The Uchiha's silent watcher shifted her weight. She had gotten tired of remaining in the same crouched position for fifteen minutes. The girl slowly moved her body further out onto the branch. She looked intently at the shinobi that was right beneath her. She grinned with malevolence. She waited a few more minutes before falling from the tree. The girl landed inches away from the sleeping shinobi. She slowly stood and walked over to him. "Sasuke-kun…!" Her voice was high. She grinned when the ninja flinched. Steadily, his eyes opened. "As like your _number_ _one_ _fangirl_, I felt it was like my duty to like follow you!" To her delight, he blanched. "I'm here to like _molest_ you!"

Contrary to popular belief, Uchiha Sasuke was not fearless.

"NOOOOOOOO…!" His voice echoed far and wide.

The girl fell to the ground, laughing hysterically. Tears streamed out of her eyes as she repeatedly smacked the ground. Sasuke slowly removed his hands from his head. He tentatively peered at the girl. She had a fake ANBU mask on, so he couldn't tell who she was. That's when noticed the skin of the girl. Her face was covered, and her clothes were different but it was definitely "MAYU!" The kunoichi instantly froze, hearing the seething voice of her teammate. She pulled the mask up, revealing her nervous face. She chuckled, and that's what set the Uchiha off. "I'm going to _kill_ you!" Mayu shot off like a person trying to get away from a shark.

After what seemed like hours of running, the two genin finally collapsed. Both of them were panting heavily. From where he lay, Sasuke still glared at his teammate. "Sorry, sorry… But that was just too funny!" Mayu smiled as she rolled over, so her belly was pushed against the ground. Her teammate's glare intensified. "I didn't think you'd react like _that_!"

"Sleep with one eye open!"

Mayu prompted her head up with hands; her elbows were pressed against the ground. She grinned widely. "But Sasuke, that wasn't _just_ for my enjoyment!" This did nothing to stop the heated gaze. "I also wanted to see how long I lasted compared to you. It seems I have more endurance than I thought. Sakura certainly did a good job…" Sasuke scoffed as he leaned back against the trunk of the tree.

"Your methods of getting stronger are just too damn weird—just like you."

"That had better be a compliment!" Sasuke didn't reply. "You're such a-"

"Hey…" The kunoichi quickly settled down. Her teammate had all of a sudden gotten serious. "Your relationship with that man—Itachi—how close were you to him?"

The kunoichi stared at her teammate, wondering why he was suddenly so interested in her past relationship with the older Uchiha. She released a slow, inaudible breath. Sasuke cracked an eye open when he didn't hear a response. His teammate was just swaying her legs. Her eyes were closed as if she was thinking about something. He twitched, and then cleared his throat. Mayu opened her eyes and just stared. "Don't be jealous, Sasuke-" The Uchiha nearly growled. "-But your brother and I were very close, at least I think so."

"That doesn't answer my question!" The shinobi crossed his arms. "How close were you?" Again, Mayu kept silent. "Answer me, damn it!"

"Jeez, no need to get you knickers in a twist," she murmured. "Like I said before, I considered him my brother. We… had a lot of fun together. I was never bored when he didn't have missions." Sasuke suddenly twitched. He clenched his teeth as if pissed. "Eh…? What's wrong with you?" The Uchiha only snapped his head away. "Oh… Don't tell me you're jealous he spent more time with me instead of his real sibling!" Sasuke growled as Mayu grinned. "Heheh… Guess that means that we're rival, eh, little brother?" The kunoichi narrowly dodged a rock.

"I'm not jealous! I could care less how much time he spent with you!" Sasuke huffed indignantly. His actions did not convince Mayu very well. "I _don't_ care!" The two were quiet for a moment. Sasuke flushed before opening his mouth. "So… did he help you train?" The kunoichi giggled. "It was just a curious question! Don't think anything of it! I'm not _jealous_!"

"Nope," she finally answered. "Itachi was an 'I won't help you if you are capable of learning it on your own' type of guy. It was really frustrating at times." Sasuke found himself nodding in agreement. A smile had replaced her annoyed frown. "But… still… I liked having Itachi around. He was my very first friend."

"When did you two meet?"

"… _Hm_… I think I was seven, so I think he was eleven." Her blue eyes moved over to her teammate. "You must have been six, right?" Sasuke nodded. "He told me about you a couple of times." She grinned. "He told me that you were as irritating as I was."

"_No one_ is as irritating as you."

"Jerk… At least I got most of Itachi's time!" Mayu retorted. Her comrade only glared at her again. The kunoichi stood up and stretched. "Well, let's start training, Sasuke!"

"I'm not finished asking questions."

"If you want my future, forget my past!" The kunoichi sang out as she danced.

"But it's your past that connects us." Sasuke stood as Mayu stopped her ridiculous dancing. She had her back to him. "Mayu… What is it that you're after?"

"… Revenge."

"You don't have to lie to me about this. Tell me the truth."

"… I'm not lying. I want him to pay for what he did." The kunoichi bowed her head. "But killing him won't make me feel better." Mayu finally turned to face him. "The revenge that I seek is not the same as yours. I want him to feel something before his life ends. I want him to regret. I want to save him." The ninja narrowed her eyes at her teammate. "Now that you know this, has your opinion of me changed?"

"No, you're still an idiot." The Uchiha dodged a fist. He moved closer to the girl. There noses were almost touching. "Revenge is not something that I'd expect from you, anyway." Mayu scowled and tried to move away, but Sasuke grabbed her wrist, stopping her from going any further. "But my goal hasn't changed. I will kill Uchiha Itachi. What he did is unforgivable. I don't care where he goes afterwards—heaven or hell. As long as I'm dealing the finishing blow, I don't care…"

"… I suppose… that makes us rivals again, huh?"

Sasuke released her arm and turned his back to her. He nodded once. "I suppose it does." Mayu turned her eyes to the ground. "Will you _save_ him before I kill him? Will you reach him first?" The Uchiha turned with a smirk on face, which surprised his teammate. "Even if you do reach him before me, do you think he's going to listen to a weakling?" Mayu's eye twitched.

"You think you can kill him at your current level?!" she heatedly retorted. Sasuke's smirk didn't fade. Mayu scoffed, and then grinned. "We're just going to have to get stronger. I won't lose to you."

"We'll just see about that."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Finished June 25, 2009

**Sasuke**: I know what you're thinking. 'Why is Sasuke so calm about this?' Well, allow me to explain my reasoning. In the original, Sasuke rushed into battle against Itachi not thinking about nothing but killing him. Now, I have watched Sasuke fighting before and after the curse mark was put on his mind. In my opinion, that thing messed up his mind. What he did in the actual episode with Itachi was very… stupid of him. He let his emotions run wild, and that isn't how he used to fight. So in this story, Sasuke didn't have the mark, and so he actually used his head. In confusion, in my opinion, I believe that Sasuke would be able to control himself more without the mark. That's my theory, and I'm sticking to it! So you can shove it _Narutofan2011_! Lol, he's a friend I argue with… _EXPLODED_ FROM THE BARREL! –Inside joke-

**Mayu's new attire**: I didn't want to describe it because I couldn't… So instead, there is a link in my profile leading to what she looks now. Check it out if interested.

**Sasuke and Mayu VS Itachi**: You have absolutely no idea how hard it was to write that. I mean, it was Itachi. He's like a hackin' god, or something! He's virtually untouchable! So every version of the fight I had in my head, the two was beaten badly. It appeared as if Itachi was bullying them—that's how bad it was. That was the only way that I could write it and not makes any of the three appear weaker than they are.

Next time: _I Can Do Better_!

Looking forward to your reviews!


	20. I Can Do Better!

Jiraiya set down the bags of items he had purchased while in town. He turned to face his blond apprentice with a smirk. Naruto cheered with excitement. He was glad—more than glad that the old man was finally beginning his training. He could hardly contain himself. The Sanin tossed Naruto a brightly colored water balloon. The young shinobi stared at in confusion. He shook it a bit before turning his eyes to Jiraiya. Before he could open his mouth, however, two ninja dropped down beside him. "It's about time you guys showed up." The young Uchiha shoved his hands in his pockets.

Naruto turned to his teammate and was about to retort, but then he noted the bruises on his face, arms, and legs. His clothes were a bit dirty as well. Not to mention, he was sweating. The blond turned to his other teammate. Although she wore different attire, she was pretty much in the same state as Sasuke. "What happened to you guys?" he questioned, furrowing his eyebrows. He looked back and forth between them.

"Sasuke and I got bored waiting for you guys to show, so we started training ourselves," Mayu answered. She crossed her arms. "And then we spared with each other. We just heard you shouting something about training, so we knew where you were."

"So you're finished training?"

"Nope, we're just stopping for awhile. I want to see what type of training you'll go through," Sasuke stated. "I want to see if this incredible jutsu really is strong."

Three pairs of curious eyes turned toward the Sanin. "So you two are interested, too, huh?" Jiraiya smirked a bit. "Too bad you didn't see the jutsu I used back in town." Sasuke raised a brow. "Naruto, I want you to describe what you saw." The Uchiha and Ishikari turned to their teammate. The blond closed his eyes in thought.

"_Hm_… Well, first off, you didn't use any hand signs." Jiraiya blinked in surprise. He didn't truly think that Naruto would make that type of observation. Truthfully, he assumed that the boy would only comment about the damage done to that man. "I think—no, I'm sure that you gather chakra in your hand before that guy charged at you. The chakra was moving around very fast in a circle. It almost looked like some sorta ball or something…" Naruto looked up at his current teacher. "When you hit him with it, that guy was spinning."

"Very good, Naruto. The key to that jutsu is _rotation_." The Sanin held up his hand for all present to see. In his hand was another water balloon. The balloon reshaped and contorted from the water inside of it. Strange thing about it was the fact that Jiraiya hadn't been moving his hand to causing the shifting of the water inside. Suddenly, the balloon burst, causing Naruto to gasp in amazement. Sasuke, too, was surprised by this feat. "With the tree climbing exercise, you learn to gather and maintain chakra. With the water walking exercise, you learned to release a steady amount of it. You mastered these, haven't you?" It was a rhetorical question, yet Naruto nodded anyway while staring at his balloon, trying to figure out how what Jiraiya was saying applied to the balloon. "With this exercise, you'll learn how to create a stream of chakra. Put simply, you will spin the chakra."

"You want me to create a stream of chakra?" Blue eyes looked up at him with doubt.

"Don't worry. I will explain more once you have the basics down. First, use the tree walking exercise to gather chakra into your hand. Next, use the water walking exercise to release a steady stream of it. Finally, use the chakra to push and turn the water inside of the balloon."

"Hey…! I get it! I have to spin the water with chakra until the balloon pops, right?"

"That's it…! You sure are getting sharper, kid!" Jiraiya praised. "Alright, we'll train until nightfall."

"Alright…!"

"Hold it." Sasuke's voice stopped the blond from jumping up and down. He walked over to the bag of balloons. He picked two of them up. "I want to try." He tossed one to Mayu, who caught it and glared. "You, too, Mayu." The kunoichi frowned at his command, but held the balloon out just as Jiraiya had. Sasuke stood and did the same. The Sanin stared at the two. He doubted that they could pull it off—not on the first try at least. Even a genius like him wouldn't be able to. The girl, he knew for certain couldn't do it either. She most likely didn't have enough chakra control. Obliviously to Jiraiya thoughts, Sasuke zoned in on the balloon in his palm. _"He said that it involves both the water walking and tree climbing exercises. I never really thought of it that way, but I'll give it a shot."_ The Uchiha concentrated on gathering chakra.

_POP_

Jiraiya's eyes expanded in complete and utter surprise. Naruto gasped at his teammate. Water dripped from his chin and hand. Remains of rubber lay in the Uchiha's hand. Seconds later, another popping noise echoed. The Sanin could only gap at the two genin. "Wow…! You two are really awesome!" Naruto stared.

"Don't be too amazed. I'm really surprised, myself." Mayu wiped the water from her face.

"If I had thought about combining those exercises, I would have learned Chidori quicker." Sasuke let the rubber fall from his hand. "Basically, forming Chidori is the same way to form Tsukeru and whatever he showed Naruto earlier."

"_Ah_, I guess that makes sense." The kunoichi noticed the confused look on Naruto's face. "Think about it… Tsukeru requires you to gather and maintain chakra. That jutsu took a lot of time, chakra, and effort to master, but the basics are the same for whatever jutsu Jiraiya-sama showed you. I'm pretty sure that's how Sasuke and I popped the balloon so easily. We're essentially already used to the exercise." Mayu scratched her cheek. "The only difference would most likely be…" She trailed off, causing the males to stare in confusion. Naruto tried to get her attention, but the kunoichi had a far away look in her eye. Not to mention, she also had a goofy grin on her face.

Sasuke cleared his throat, and then focused on Naruto. "What I think she was trying to say, before she was distracted by her own thoughts, was that the only difference between how we popped the balloon and how he popped the balloon is the spinning." The blond gave him a blank look for his explanation. The young Uchiha sighed. "Our attacks don't need to spin, so the water inside probably didn't spin either. The balloon popped because of the chakra inflated it until it couldn't hold it anymore. My balloon swelled, while his balloon-" He thumbed in Jiraiya's direction. "-Looked as if tiny things were trying to get out. Got it?"

"Yeah, I got it!" Naruto genuinely looked enlightened, but then he frowned. "But… if I want to learn the jutsu Pervy Sage showed, then I'm going to have to pop it by spinning, not just by gathering chakra and keeping it like your attacks, right?" Sasuke nodded his head.

"Alright…!" Mayu finally snapped out of her daze, startling the three shinobi. She patted Naruto on the shoulder, almost making him drop the balloon. "Naruto, you'd better learn this jutsu! Our team will be nearly invincible if you do!" She hugged herself, trying to contain her exhilaration. "_Oooh_…! I can't wait to make that come true."

"_Uh_…" Jiraiya began.

"We've learned its best not to question her peculiar behavior," Sasuke supplied.

"_Ah_…"

"Well, we'll leave you to your training, Naruto!" Mayu exclaimed, once she stopped hugging herself. "Sasuke and I have to get back to ours."

"You're not staying to watch?"

"We don't have time to just watch you." Sasuke crossed his arms. "We can't wait around for you either, so we'll see you later."

"Hey, wait a minute! We said that we would train as a team—all three of us, together!"

"Calm down, Naruto." The kunoichi waved her hand. "We can't really do that when you're doing this type of training, right? I've already come up with a plan. Sasuke and I will only train our bodies. The only thing we're working on is stamina and endurance. _You_ don't have any trouble with these." Naruto grinned sheepishly. "Don't worry about us leaving you behind or something. Until your training's done, Sasuke and I agreed to only focus on this type of training for us."

"So don't make us wait, moron."

"Sasuke, you-"

"But he's right, you know."

"Not you, too, Mayu!"

--

Long, shuddering breaths came out of the young Ishikari's mouth. The bow dropped from her hands. The kunoichi fell backwards, arms spread out beside her. She cried out in frustration and slight pain. Her hands were starting to get numb again. "For crying out loud! Did I always used to be this weak?!" She squeezed her eyes shut. Her teammate, seeing her position out of the corner of his eye, stopped his handstand push ups. Raising a brow, he walked over to his comrade. The young shinobi towered over her, blocking the sun's rays.

"You used too much chakra again, didn't you?" The response he received was a tired glare. "You could just reuse the arrows instead of sending Nana back to get more. Each time you summon her, the less chakra you have." Mayu growled at him. "Oh, you just now realized that?" The Uchiha shook his head and crossed his arms. "This bad luck I have with teammates knows no bounds."

"Shut up, Sasuke!" The kunoichi sighed, and then frowned. "It seems like a long time since I decided to practice using my bow in this body, and I still can't get the speed I once had." Her blue eyes looked up at her teammate. "Can't I just do what you're doing?"

"No, absolutely not." Mayu pouted at his quick reply. "I want you to be as fast as you were when you were in Sakura's body. Your arrows were nearly invisible to me without the use of my Sharingan. Since there are few Sharingan users in the world, I'm sure that your long-ranged quick attacks will definite benefit this team—only if they're as fast as they were."

"Damn you and your… logic…" Mayu pouted, causing the Uchiha to smirk. He held out his hands. The kunoichi raised her arms, allowing Sasuke to pull her from the ground.

"Oh, and another thing, you should probably just carry your bow instead of summoning Nana each time you need it. You never know when a battle might take place."

"I guess you're right, but the only way to get more arrows is to let Nana-chan go back and get them, otherwise I'd lose ammo." Mayu turned her eyes to her feline partner. It appeared as if the black leopard was sunbathing. "And as Nana-chan is now, she wouldn't be much help in help in battle." Mayu sighed heavily. "I can't wait until she's as big as Mizuiro."

"Mizuiro…?"

"_Ah_, I guess there's much that the two of you still don't know about me and my clan." The kunoichi scratched her cheek. She moved her eyes back toward Sasuke, and then grinned. "Curious…?" she asked.

"Sure… why not?"

Grumbling because of his impassiveness, Mayu tried to calm herself down. "How about this? I'll tell you two more about me when Naruto finishes his training with Jiraiya-sensei." Sasuke shrugged his shoulders, uncaring, causing the kunoichi's eyebrow to twitch.

"Doesn't matter to me, but okay," he said. He noticed the way his teammate's fingers twitched and decided to quickly change the subject. "Right, anyway… Let's start running. Your arms may be out of use, but not your legs. Hop to it."

"Who died and made you leader?!"

"I've been the leader of this team for awhile now…" Sasuke looked at Mayu as if she were an idiotic. He then took off, jogging. The kunoichi glared at his back for a moment before sighing heavily. After a quick glance at Nana, she followed after the Uchiha.

After several grueling hours of running, jumping, and heavy lifting, Mayu finally collapsed against a tree. "Damn it, Sasuke! You're like the freaking energizer bunny or something!" The kunoichi could barely keep her eyes open. "Anko-sensei wasn't this bad! At least she let me take break in between training!" The young Uchiha was also panting heavily. He sat under a tree, glaring at the ground.

"This is the only way to get stronger, quicker." He looked up at Mayu. "You're the one who said you wanted abs and have the stamina that matched—no surpassed that woman." Sasuke prompted his elbows against his raised knees. "Besides, you're the only who suggested this freakish way of training."

"I didn't think you'd cooperate!"

"We've been at this for weeks, and you choose _now_ to start complaining?"

"Be quiet!"

"Sasuke, Mayu…!" Footsteps approached, causing the two genin to look up. "I thought I heard you two arguing." Uzumaki Naruto walked toward his teammates wearing a weary grin. He carried a bag of rubber balls with him. The two noticed the way his hands trembled as he moved. The blond shinobi sat in between the two and looked back and forth. "So how's your training coming?" Sasuke glanced at Mayu, who was glaring at him, before answering.

"We're just doing exercises to toughen up our bodies," he said.

"I think you mean _extreme_ exercises!" Mayu crossed her arms with a scoff. "Anyway, what about you, Naruto?" His blue eyes looked away. "Ne, Naruto… You haven't popped the rubber ball yet?" The blond dejectedly nodded his head. He said that he managed to put a hole in it, but it didn't really pop. "Well, Jiraiya-sama did say this one was a lot harder than the water balloon, right?"

"Yeah, I know, but I seriously didn't think it'd be this tough." Naruto sighed heavily. He held up his hand, showing off a swirled dot. "He said to use this as a concentration… thing. Since then I only managed to create holes in the rubber balls." He glanced at his two teammates. "Hey, how long did it take you guys?"

"What do you mean?" Sasuke asked.

"I meant how long did it take to learn Tsukeru and Chidori?"

"Kakashi explained Chidori to me right away. But he only explained and demonstrated. I had to learn Chidori on my own. I'd say it took almost the entire month to master."

"Same here—Anko-sensei didn't know the jutsu at all. My only help came from the scroll the Hokage gave me, and then I got my memories back which gave me a visual of what the jutsu should have looked like… But even then I didn't master it before me and Sasuke fought each other. Which is why I used his Sharingan as a power booster. If I hadn't done that, who knows what could've happened to me!"

Feeling suddenly guilty, Sasuke felt the need to give an excuse. "You forced me to. I might have lost against you in that body. The Uchiha clan's reputation would have been-"

"Oh, shut up!" The two glared at one another for a moment. "Anyway, Naruto-" The kunoichi turned her eyes to her blond teammate. "-if concentration is the key, you're probably falling short, right? I bet something keeps popping in your head, which is a distraction for you." A self-conscious blush settled on Naruto's cheeks. Mayu sighed. "Why am I not surprised?"

"It doesn't help that you hardly ever paid attention in class, and would even skip out." Sasuke frowned. "For you concentration could be your downfall."

"Hey, that's not true!" Naruto then looked away. "But I guess I should've paid more attention to Iruka-sensei. I admit I'm a bit of an idiot."

"A bit…?"

"Shut _up_, Sasuke!"

"Both of you cut it out!" Mayu chided. The kunoichi stood up. "Anyway, we should get back to our respective training. I left my bow near Nana-chan." Sasuke stood and nodded in agreement. Naruto was quick to protest their departure, halting their movements.

"I don't mean to prevent you two from moving on, but can't you stay a little while longer?" He poked his two index fingers together. A slight blush appeared as his blue eyes looked towards the ground as if embarrassed. "Ya know… For moral support…?"

"Don't you just want to glomp Naruto-kun?" Mayu just about had sparkles in her eyes. Sasuke resisted rolling his eyes.

"You want us to _watch_ you?" He arched a brow. "I already told you that we don't have time to waste."

"Yeah, but-"

"How about this—if Sasuke can handle what I'm about to do to him, then we'll stay? But only for five minutes!" Mayu interrupted.

"Really?!"

"Hold on a second! What do you mean? What are you about to do to me?" Sasuke did not like where this was going. However, Mayu only waved off his questions, deeming them unimportant.

"Okay!" Naruto exclaimed. "You better be able to endure!"

"Just wait a-"

Without much of a warning, Mayu twirled on the balls of her foot and brought up her left leg and kicked her teammate in the stomach, sending him sliding a few feet back. Naruto gapped as he watched Sasuke slide to a stop, holding his torso. The kunoichi smirked, slowly putting her foot back down. "How was that?" she questioned. The young Uchiha lifted his head with a glare.

"I know I say this many times, but this time… I really am going to _kill_ you!" Sasuke charged toward his teammate, who was frantically trying to stop him by waving her arms around. "Shut up!" He threw a punch to her face. Mayu's back slammed against the trunk of the tree. She slid down, groaning.

"Sasuke…!" The Uchiha ignored his blond teammate's shout. He went over to Mayu and picked her up by her shirt, preparing to hit her again.

"Wait! Wait! Wait! Don't you feel a difference?!" The kunoichi cried as she scrunched her face up. Sasuke blinked, not expecting to hear those words. They were a bit confusing. He didn't know what she meant by 'a difference.' A few moments, Mayu cracked open an eye, thinking it was safe. She noticed that her teammate's eyebrows were furrowed together. "Y-Yeah," she said uneasily. "When I kicked you, it made you slide back, but… it didn't hurt as much as the last time I did it, right?"

Sasuke blinked again, thinking over her words. He gave a nod as he released her. Mayu breathed a sigh of relief. "So you were just testing me?" The kunoichi rapidly nodded her head. "I see…" He held out a hand, which Mayu took. "Sorry about that."

"You didn't have to hit me so hard you ass!" The kunoichi gently touched her red cheek.

"What do you mean test?" Naruto asked, confused. "Why test Sasuke? I thought we had a deal."

"Of course we still have our deal, Naruto, but I took this as a chance to… _motivate_ you." Naruto's eyes glazed over, signifying that he wasn't getting what she was saying. Mayu chuckled at his dazed expression. "By motivate, I mean show you what you're missing. Sasuke and I have been training our bodies for awhile now. Don't you see a change?" She gestured toward the young Uchiha. Naruto focused in on his fellow shinobi.

"He looks the same as always—a jerk."

"I dare you to say that again!"

"No, no, no…! I'm not talking about his facial expression." Mayu had unknowingly agreed with the blond, causing Sasuke to twitch and the former to chuckle. "I meant his body." She held up her teammate's arm. "Look, he has more muscle on his arms." The kunoichi also pointed at his uncovered legs. "He has also gained muscle on his legs." Naruto nodded, understanding as Mayu dropped Sasuke's arm. "And not to mention-" She boldly lifted Sasuke's shirt showing off his upper body. Of course, she didn't care that he was blushing wildly. She also didn't care that he struggled to put his shirt back down. Naruto shook his head with a sweat drop running down his face. "-he no longer as a flat stomach. He's starting to form abs—isn't it great?" She ran a hand down his stomach, causing the Uchiha to shudder.

"Stop touching me!" Sasuke pushed the grinning kunoichi away, and then pulled down his shirt. Naruto rolled his eyes at their actions. Honestly, Mayu was a bit _too_ comfortable with them. She had even entered the hotel room—after showering—with nothing but a towel on. The two shinobi had nearly died, choking on water. But her—she wasn't uncomfortable in the _least_.

"Okay, okay, but why would that motivate me?"

"Think about it, Naruto, body-wise, you're being left behind. I'm sure that you don't have the same body type." Mayu nudged his arm with her elbow. "You know girls like a guy with muscle. Sasuke just might end up getting that pretty girl's attention when we get back to the village." Naruto scoffed, uncaring.

"Yeah right!"

"Say what you will, but you saw how Sasuke got right back up. It probably didn't hurt him at all as a matter of fact." The Ishikari placed her hands on her hips. "But if I were to punch you right now, you'd probably double over in pain." The blond grimaced at the thought. "As of right now, you're _losing_ to Sasuke!" Mayu pointed a finger. Naruto's eyes expanded as realization hit him. Sasuke merely rolled his eyes at the suddenly dramatic atmosphere. "Do you want to continue being left behind? There's only so much time before Sasuke snaps and begins training in other areas!"

"There's no way I'm going to lose! I will overcome this obstacle! I'm going to become Hokage! I won't let this jutsu _or_ Sasuke get in my way!" Feeling suddenly pumped up, Naruto stood with his hands clenched in determination. "I won't lose to either of them!" To the surprise of his teammates, he bit his thumb. With the flowing blood, he drew something in the palm of his other hand. The blond ninja then went grabbed a rubber ball out of the bag and held it in his hand. "You just watch me!" Naruto placed his hand over the ball and closed his eyes.

Sasuke watched the blond try to concentrate. He glanced over at his female teammate, who was smiling. _"Motivation, huh…?"_ He narrowed his eyes before turning them back to Naruto. He noted that the ball was contorting much like the water balloon had when Jiraiya popped it. He didn't see the Sanin pop a rubber ball, though. Mayu and himself were already gone working out when he had introduced Naruto to the second part of the jutsu training. Hell, they hadn't been there when Naruto had finally popped the water balloon.

Naruto's eyes snapped open. He had finally gotten the image into his head. His teammate's motivational tactics had cleared his head, but at the same time made him determine. "Now…!" He reared his arm back, and then at a rapid pace began to pump chakra into the rubber ball. As he did so, he imagined that his charka was spinning around the focal point. He could actually feel heat and pressure—even _wind_—coming from the ball in his hand.

An explosion of chakra actually lifted the blond off the ground and threw him back. "Naruto…!" His teammates had also felt the force that Naruto had created. They were thrown back a bit as well, only Naruto were thrown back even further. Once they cleared their vision, they quickly, they got up and ran toward their teammate who was finally stopped by none other than the Pervy Sage, himself. As they were running toward them, Sasuke could not help but see the long burrow that Naruto's body had created. _"Just how strong is this jutsu he's learning?"_

Mayu dropped down next to her knees beside Naruto's fallen body. Her blue eyes stared intensely at his hand. It was really _sizzling_! _"Even though it's supposed to be a wind element jutsu, the chakra actually burned his hand."_ She frowned a bit. _"Then again, I suppose I've been burned numerous times by the past masters' chakra."_ The blond shinobi turned on his side and gave a small grin. Mayu sighed, and then smiled. "You're really something, Naruto."

"Take that… Sasuke."

"Moron…" The Uchiha released a sigh of relief.

"Okay—it looks like the second stage is complete," Jiraiya stated, bringing all eyes to him. Naruto's body shook, but he tried to turn to face his sensei with grin.

"Let's hurry and start the third step…"

"That's going to have to wait." The Toad Sanin frowned. "We're going to meet Tsunade now."

"So you've finally managed to find her?" Sasuke asked. Jiraiya nodded his head.

"As soon as Naruto is able to walk on his own, we'll leave this place and head to _Tanzaku City_."

--

"Well, this doesn't seem too good." The kunoichi's eyes glanced at the pamphlet in her hands, and then back up. Her eyes did this for several seconds. "Something's supposed to be there." She folded up the brochure and stopped, causing two other members of the group to stop as well. Naruto, however, did not notice. He was much too busy complimenting his stuffed frog wallet. The group had been on their way to see the large castle that was placed at the top of the city. Jiraiya had also said that he could maybe locate Tsunade if he was on higher ground. "Naruto…!" The blond ninja turned, startled out of his money daydream. "Come here!"

"What? I thought we were going to the castle!"

"Yeah, that's the problem—there is no castle!"

"What?" Sasuke turned to his teammate in surprise. "What do you mean there's no castle?" Mayu pointed up. Both Jiraiya and Sasuke looked towards where her finger was pointed.

"Do you see a large structure sticking out of the ground? Because I, for one, do not." The Sanin's eyes grew wide in shock. He jumped up onto the nearby wall to get a better look. The girl had been right. The castle hadn't been visible to where they were standing, but he could see the leftover rumble of the once great structure. The three genin jumped up and landed beside the old ninja. "I knew something was wrong…"

"What happened here?" Naruto murmured. Jiraiya did not know the answer to his student's question, but he certainly did feel a chill go through his body. Whatever had happened, he knew that it wasn't good.

The group was suddenly alerted to another group of people. They seemed to be running away. And judging from the terror in their eyes, it must have been something frightful. Jiraiya called out to them. Only one was brave enough to stop. "What happened?" he asked. "Why are you running?"

"You should run, too!" The four noticed the way the man's voice shook when he shouted. "There's a monster up there!"

"Monster…?" Naruto narrowed his eyes.

"What type of monster?" Sasuke asked.

"A huge snake monster! It destroyed the castle instantly!" With another frightful shout, the man took off running again. He totally ignored Naruto's next question.

"Huge snake…?" Mayu grimaced. "No wonder they ran away."

"We're going! Hurry…!" Jiraiya jumped from the wall, not waiting for the three genin to follow. Naruto, Sasuke, and Mayu looked at one another—a frown on their faces.

Apparently a giant snake carelessly destroyed a landmark. The three knew only one person associated with giant snakes and destruction. "_He's_ here, isn't he?" Naruto questioned, glaring at the ground. That man didn't really bring up any good memories. He, in disguise, had attacked his team, gave his female teammate a mark that made her do horrible things, and tried to annihilate their home.

The very thought of the Snake Sanin repulsed Sasuke and made his blood boil. The fact that he had sought him out in the chuunin exam for his own selfish desires pissed him off. He was nobody's plaything! But what really got to him was the fact that he also seemed to want Mayu, too. He had even sent four of his strongest to obtain her. It bothered him that Orochimaru wanted his teammate. As it was right now, he was equal to his brother—someone he wanted and needed to kill. "We don't know that for sure." Sasuke clenched his fist. "But we must keep in mind that he could be a factor. He's one of the Legendary Three—a Sanin. He shouldn't be taken lightly." His two teammates nodded their heads. "Let's go!"

"Right!"

--

"She isn't anywhere!" Naruto stomped his feet as he walked behind Jiraiya. His two teammates tiredly trailed behind him. Since visiting the—nonexistent—castle, they had continued their search for the female Sanin. The day had slowly turned to night, irritating Naruto a bit. His teammates, however, were too worn-out to be annoyed anymore. They had lost their vigor a couple of hours ago. They had even split up, but their efforts were in vain. They had yet to find Tsunade. "And you still drag us all over the place! Can't you see we're tired?"

"Don't put us in the same group as you, dumbass," Sasuke, irritably retorted. "Unlike you, we have _normal_ stamina!" Naruto almost whined. It wasn't his fault.

Jiraiya suddenly stopped, causing his three subordinates to halt as well. He turned his head, looking at the adjacent building. Mayu's eyebrow twitched. He didn't look the least bit tired—the oldest of them all—and now he wanted to go to a bar? Maybe she would have been fine if she still inhabited the body of Haruno Sakura, but as she was now, she needed rest in a soft warm bed. She needed her _sleep_, damn it! "Let's have dinner here for now."

"What? Are you kidding me?!" Naruto pointed to the sign that clearly stated that it was a bar. "This is a bar!"

"So what?"

"In case you've forgotten, most of us are kids!"

"Moron, just because it's a bar doesn't mean we have to drink." Sasuke walked forward not waiting for the others to follow him.

"As long as I get to sit down, I'll be a bit happier." Mayu followed after him, ignoring the incredulous look she had received.

"You three could just munch on appetizers." Jiraiya also entered the establishment, leaving Naruto alone. The blond grumbled and muttered something about wanting to eat Ramen instead.

Once they were all inside, they searched for a place to sit. Jiraiya scrunched his face up after spotting blond hair. The woman, that the hair belonged to, matched his expression, though, she appeared a bit drunk. The male Sanin's eyes suddenly grew as realization crossed his features. He pointed, quite dramatically, at the woman. "Tsunade…!"

"Jiraiya…!" The blond woman sounded equally surprised. "Why are you here?"

"That's her?!" Sasuke mouth dropped open in shock. "Just look at those _hooters_!" The young Uchiha had to dodge an oncoming plate. Unfortunately, the object hit Naruto in the face, causing him to fall to the floor. Regrettably, his dodge did not prevent Mayu from hitting him upside the head for his tactless comment. "Well, they are…" he grumbled, rubbing the comical bump on his head. "No wonder he was so determined to find her."

Ignoring his comments, as well as his withering apprentice, Jiraiya began to walk over to Tsunade's table. Sitting with her, he recognized the woman named Shizune. "I finally found you. Boy, I'm tired." He sat down without an invitation and made himself comfortable. Meanwhile, Mayu pulled Naruto from the floor.

"I can't believe that chick's fifty," he murmured, rubbing his sore forehead. "What a swindler…"

"Naruto…!" Mayu scolded. The blond merely shrugged. The kunoichi sighed heavily. "Let's just go…"

The three moved to join the table. Naruto sat by Jiraiya, while Mayu sat in between him and Sasuke. The young Uchiha sat on the end. It was a bit tight but honestly, they had no room to complain seeing as how it wasn't their table to begin with. Sasuke took this chance to exam the two unfamiliar faces. The blond woman, who was supposedly the same age as Jiraiya, looked to be in her twenties. Although, she appeared drunk, she had a piercing stare. She seemed to be ignoring most of the table's occupants. Her eyes only looked toward her sake, and the one who happened to be pouring it for her—Jiraiya. She used to be teammates with the male Sanin, meaning she was a Sanin as well, just like Orochimaru. Sasuke's onyx eyes shifted over to the female accompanying the busty woman.

Her dark eyes moved back and forth between the two Sanin. It appeared as if she wanted to say something, but she wouldn't—or was it that she couldn't? Sasuke narrowed his eyes as he continued to size her up. She didn't look like much—meaning she looked too soft to be a fighter—but she had to be a ninja since she was traveling with a Sanin. Because of past experiences, Sasuke learned not to judge a person's strength based on appearances alone. His very own teammate might have looked like an idiot—and technically he was—but he was full of surprises and hidden strength.

"What a day… Seeing old acquaintances everywhere…" Tsunade muttered after downing a cup of sake. She put the cup down, allowing Jiraiya to pour her some more. The old man then sipped his own sake.

"Orochimaru…?" He said this as if it were a statement rather than a question. The three genin beside him flinched, Shizune noticed. Sasuke narrowed his eyes. Naruto went back to eating, although a bit more hesitantly. And Mayu looked down at her lap. Shizune thought it was a bit strange how they reacted. Could they have encountered Orochimaru as well? She subtly glanced at each of them once more before focusing on Jiraiya again. "What happened?"

The shared fleeting look between the two women did not go unnoticed by Sasuke.

"Nothing much," Tsunade answered. "We just said hello." She pulled a deck of cards out of her bosom and began shuffling them. The woman had just told a bold faced lie. Sasuke did not know Orochimaru very well. Hell, he didn't _want_ to know him, but he knew that would not just stop to say hello. But the question was: Why was she covering for a snake bastard like him? Former teammates or not, she should have given any information she had concerning that traitor. "Let's cut the small talk, Jiraiya." Tsunade set the deck on the table. "What do you want from me?"

Jiraiya picked up the cards and began shuffling them again. "Fine, straight to the point then." Once he was finished shuffling the cards, he set them back on the table. He looked his former teammate straight in the eye. "To put it bluntly, Tsunade, the village has requested that you come back and become the Fifth Hokage."

Tsunade froze.

Naruto choked on his food.

Sasuke spit out his water.

The Uchiha ignored the angry squeaks and oinks that the pig made toward him and focused on Jiraiya, not believing what he was hearing. Tsunade slowly snapped out of her shocked daze and began dealing the cards. All the while, Naruto was having a hard time getting his food down. Mayu rolled her eyes and then smacked her teammate's back. The food was spit back out of his mouth. The blond breathed in deeply, trying to get the oxygen back into his lungs. He turned disbelieving eyes to Jiraiya, but was ignored.

Mayu was also a bit surprised by this turn of events. The Third Hokage had not died in the conflict like he did originally. Jiraiya should not have asked her to be the Fifth. She had been under the impression that the reason for seeking out Tsunade was so that she could heal the many who had been hurt badly during the invasion. There were two people in particular that she had wanted the woman to heal. The two people were her sensei and Rock Lee. Mayu had believed that that was her only purpose now that the Third hadn't died. She narrowed her eyes in thought. _"What could he be thinking?"_

"You've heard about the invasion by the Sound and Sand, right?" Jiraiya studied his cards, almost seeming indifferent about the subject. Tsunade picked her up cards and gazed as them with a frown.

"Yes. I head it directly from Orochimaru. He was the one to initiate the attack, right?"

"What?! Orochimaru's the one?!" Naruto looked back and forth between Jiraiya and Tsunade. "I know that he's a bad guy, but why does he have such a grudge against the Leaf village?"

"Haven't you put the pieces together yet?" Sasuke glared at his teammate. "Orochimaru is also a Sanin."

"Why then?! Sanin are ninja of the Leaf! Why is it that he tries to kill everyone?!"

Becoming annoyed by the shouting, Tsunade glared over in Naruto's direction. "Jiraiya, who is this damn brat?" The younger blond glared right back. Jiraiya chuckled a bit before answering her. The older kunoichi stared in surprise at Naruto. _"This is… the Kyuubi's jailer?"_ Getting more and more impatient, Naruto stood up and slammed his fist against the table.

"Hey! My question wasn't answered!" He began ranting and raving about Orochimaru and the next Hokage. He didn't seem too happy with Tsunade being the next in line. The female Sanin looked a bit offended.

"Naruto…" Mayu began.

"_Hm_?"

"Sit your ass down," Sasuke finished. "And shut up while you're at it." Naruto visibly pouted as he sat back down. He crossed his arms, grumbling.

"I'll say it again, Tsunade. The village has requested that you become their Hokage. Even the old man agreed to this. Will you accept?"

The woman seemed to be actually thinking it over. Naruto glared at her. What was there needed to think over? The title of _Hokage_ was being handed to her on a silver platter. She didn't have to work for it like he did! The young ninja was both pissed and envious that a trickster like her was offered the title of the strongest ninja. And here she was contemplating over it like it was a big decision to make! If he had gotten the same offer, he would jump at the chance—as should anyone!

"Not possible." She tossed her cards down. With a calm demeanor, she looked Jiraiya's way. "I refuse."

Both Naruto and Sasuke looked shocked at her flat out rejection. They couldn't even think of anything to say to that. The young Uchiha could only shake his head in disbelief. Jiraiya merely smiled her response. "I remember that line. I asked you on a date a long time ago and you turned me down." Despite the situation, Sasuke had the urge to comment.

"I can see why, Pervy Sage." He ignored the glare being thrown his way.

"What are you saying?!" Naruto finally erupted. "Pervy Sage! You told me we're taking this person back so that she could heal Kakashi-sensei! But now you're asking her to become Hokage? What the hell?!" The younger blond turned his angry eyes to Tsunade. "She even declined like it was the worst job you could ask of her!" When no one answered him, Naruto started groaning loudly in frustration.

"Don't panic, only Tsunade is capable of becoming the Fifth Hokage." Naruto stopped his screaming. "During the fierce war, she contributed greatly to the Leaf's victory. Her combat and medical skills are still unrivaled. Also, Tsunade is the granddaughter of the First Hokage. She is the most suited to become the Hokage. If she becomes Hokage, she will have to return to the village. Once there, she can heal the ones wounded in the invasion. In addition, the higher ups of the village were the ones to make this decision. It's not something mere genin could comment on."

Naruto nearly growled at him while Sasuke frowned.

"Jiraiya, I didn't know you took on a genin team." She chuckled. "Truthfully, I didn't think you'd ever take care of some more brats."

"Only Naruto is my current apprentice. The other two are his teammates. They're like three peas in a pod—couldn't be separated."

"Oh really…? This one seems to be ruder, stupider, and uglier than the previous one." To her surprise, Naruto wasn't the only one who glared. The young kunoichi in the middle, who had barely spoken this entire time, was also glaring at her. She arched an eyebrow, slightly curious.

"It's hard to be the Fourth in those fields. His capabilities as a ninja were unrivaled in history." A small smile appeared on Jiraiya's face as he spoke of his former student. "He was talented with jutsu, incredibly smart, and popular. He was also quite handsome—much like I am."

"In your dreams, maybe…" Sasuke scoffed.

"But even the Fourth died young. He threw his life away for that village." As she spoke, she did not make eye contact with anyone. "Life is not like money." This time, she looked at her former teammate. "Only an idiot bet's his life so easily." Naruto tried desperately to keep his anger in. The chopsticks in his hand snapped under the pressure. "My grandfather and the Second wished to end the war… but they wasted their lives before they could accomplish that."

"You've… change, Tsunade." A frown graced his features. "I don't know what you've been thinking, but you have just put it into words."

Tsunade blew off his comment and laughed. "I'm in my fifties, even if I look this way. Time changes people." She stopped smiling. "Sarutobi-sensei is the same. He didn't fight, did he? He's become an old man. He knew that if he fought, he would die, which is why he begs me to take his place. How cowardly and foolish of him." The female Sanin had the nerve to chuckle at the angry expressions she was getting from the three males opposite of her. She stared hard at her cards, and then sighed. "The title of the Hokage is a piece of crap. Only an idiot would become one."

The Slug Sanin quickly ducked her head. Not even a second later, two kunai was impaled into the wall where her head used to be. Her amber eyes stared in surprise as Naruto stood on the table, preparing to attack her. Her former teammate, however, had a grip on him, preventing him from getting to her. _"So fast… I barely saw them coming."_ She narrowed her eyes. _"Wait a minute…"_ She knew that the blond shinobi would attack. She could see it in his eyes. But she knew that he wouldn't throw kunai just to jump up and attack her as well. She looked toward the other two genin. Both wore heated gazes. The male had even activated his kekkei genkai—the Sharingan. Tsunade felt a shiver go down her spine. _"Killer intent…?"_ No genin should be able to do that, and yet this boy—this _Uchiha_—had done so, and it had even effected her. The female ninja's gaze looked as if it would melt ice. She didn't think her words would offend them, but it would seem as if they were the ones who threw the kunai.

Naruto slammed his foot on the table, returning Tsunade's eyes back to him. "Anyone who insults the Fourth Hokage or the old man—even if it is a girl—deserves a punch to the face! You _bitch_!" The blond shinobi hit his palm with his fist to further show his contempt with the woman. The rest of the group waited in silence for Tsunade's reply. Jiraiya still kept his firm grip on Naruto. The older kunoichi smirked, and then put her foot on the table, momentarily forgetting about the attempt on her life. Her face was inches away from Naruto's.

"You've got quite a lot of guts to say that to me! Step outside, _brat_!"

Jiraiya sighed heavily.

--

"Mayu…"

"What?"

"I know why Naruto and I attacked her, but why did you?"

"… She insulted the ones responsible for the Ishikari clan's home." The kunoichi narrowed her eyes watching the older woman talk to Naruto in that condescending tone of hers. "All four Hokages, although they kept us isolated, took good care of us. I might not have known the First of Second, but the Third is someone I look up to. I refuse to let her or anyone talk about what the Hokages have done for everyone." Sasuke smirked.

"I see." He watched his teammate being thrown back with just a flick of Tsunade's finger. He frowned. "She's strong. We might not be alive if Naruto hadn't distracted her like that."

"Probably."

"Oh boy… Hear comes his 'I will become Hokage' speech." And just like the Uchiha said, talks of dream and Hokages spewed out of the young boy's mouth. Sasuke arched a brow, noting the way Tsunade's demeanor had changed. _"There must be a reason she feels the way she does about the title of Hokage. Why else would she become distracted?"_ His dark eyes grew wide, seeing his teammate make a spherical mass of chakra appear in his palm. _"Is that what he's trying to learn?"_ Jiraiya had made sure that Mayu and he did not know what jutsu he was teaching Naruto. He had even gone as far as to not mention what it was called. _"Looks impressive_," he thought as he watched Naruto charge pass them, only to watch him go flying back again. He sighed, disappointed. "So he hasn't mastered it yet."

"Looks that way." Mayu shook her head. Tsunade had created a split in the ground with just her finger alone. Naruto tripped and bounced back because his attack had hit the ground before it hit Tsunade. The blond shinobi was now stuck in the fissure with only his legs sticking out. Mayu moved to help her teammate out of the ground with Sasuke following after. "Are you okay?" Naruto coughed and sputtered, hacking up dirt and who knows what else.

"Jiraiya…! Are you the one who taught him the Rasengan?" Tsunade sounded like she was accusing him. Sasuke turned to her. Rasengan, he thought. His eyes moved back to Naruto. He, too, looked surprised by the name. So even he didn't know what it was called? That guy was holding back a lot from his own student, wasn't he?

"I'm his teacher, after all." Jiraiya stated. Tsunade merely scoffed.

"Only you and the Forth could use that jutsu. Are you acting like a teacher and teaching him something he can't possibly master?" Her previous teammate didn't give a response. "Don't give him any ideas! No wonder this brat daydreams about becoming Hokage!"

"Hold on a minute! I am not daydreaming!" Naruto stood up and pointed a finger. "You idiot! I can master this jutsu in three days if I wanted!"

Tsunade only seemed to find this amusing. "You got it, brat. A man never backs down on his word."

"I don't take back my words!" Naruto gave a confident grin. "That's my nindo—my way of the ninja!"

"Then let's make a bet. I'll give you one week. If you can master that move in that time, I will acknowledge you becoming Hokage…" She pointed to her crystal. "I'll even give you this necklace." Shizune tried to protest, but no one spared her a glance.

"You can keep that crappy necklace." Naruto locked his hands behind his head uncaringly.

"You little fool," Jiraiya berated the blond. "That necklace belonged to the First Hokage. If you happened to sell it, it could buy about three mountains."

"So… The First wore jewelry…?"

"Shut up, Sasuke." Mayu nudged her teammate in the ribs. A goofy grin spread across Naruto's face. His teammates could practically see the money signs in his eyes.

"Lady, you've got yourself a deal!"

"Talk about a change of heart…" Sasuke murmured.

"But if you can't master the jutsu in one week—seven days… you lose to me-" Tsunade held up his frog wallet. "And I'll take all your money."

Naruto began freaking out and looking all over for the wallet. "I didn't even notice that she took it…" Sasuke glanced in the woman's direction. She, as well as her aid, began to walk away. _"She's faster than I thought. If she hadn't been drunk, who knows what she could have done to Naruto."_ He clenched his teeth. There were so many people in the world that was stronger—much stronger than he was. Sure, she had age and experience on her side, but in the presence of these strong ninja, he just felt so… _weak_.

The blond ninja stomped his foot after standing. He glared at the departing kunoichi's back. Why was it that everyone that he didn't know _always_ underestimated him? It pissed him off to no end. Well, he'd show her! He'd show them all. "Don't underestimate me!" Naruto shouted after her. "I can only do better as I am now! I will master the Rasengan! You just watch!"

"Naruto…" Sasuke frowned. He could see the confidence in his eyes. It made him want to believe in him. _"He's right—we can only get better as we are now. No one knows what we're truly made up yet."_ He balled up his fist. _"I'll get stronger as well. To kill those men, I have to." _He would do anything in his power to keep their hands away from his team. It was then that he noticed Mayu smiling at him. He raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"Oh nothing…" she answered, and then grinned. This only made Sasuke more suspicious. He glared at her, wanting to hear the truth. "Seriously, it's nothing!" Naruto chuckled, watching his two teammates.

"I get it! Sasuke was just thinking about protecting us, and that's why you were smiling, right, Mayu?" The giggle she gave was answer enough. Sasuke flushed.

"I—I was not! Why would I ever think about something like that?!"

"It was written all over you face, Sasuke-_kun_!" Naruto pointed a finger.

"Shut up, moron!"

"I think it's cute that you love us so much, Sasuke-chan!"

"… I hate both of you."

Jiraiya chuckled at the team's behavior.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Finished August 4, 2009

It's a late update, I know. For those who looked at my profile, you already knew the reason for the delay.

This chapter was mostly about training, I suppose. If you saw any other elements thrown in there, then… _huzzah_! Anyway, yeah… that's about it concerning this chapter, so I'm going to move on.

**Legendary Three Battle**: To tell you the truth—dreading it. That's the sorta of battle that can't really be touched. I seriously thought about it for awhile and came with nothing original. So if you have some ideas about their battle, then please review. I would love to hear—see, whatever—them. But as of now, that fight won't be describe. They'll probably be fighting, but… yeah, not planning on basically copying what you've probably already seen loads of times. Trust me; your insight would help out a lot.

The next chapter will most likely be an end to the _Find Tsunade_ arc. Quite honestly, I was getting a bit bored with it. But not to worry, after that chapter, I can start to work on more original missions for the new Team 7. I seriously can't wait for that!

Next time: _This Might Sting A Bit_

I'm looking forward to seeing your reviews.


	21. This Might Sting A Bit

Ino expertly wrapped the bouquet of flowers before handing the item to the customer. She had to admit that she rather liked the arrangement. She believed it was her best work yet. After receiving the proper amount of money, Ino gave a polite goodbye to the young woman. The woman nodded, and then turned, heading for the door. She halted her movements and greeted the other employee. His eyes stared blankly at the customer, giving no response. The woman chuckled nervously, and then hastily left, leaving the bell chiming.

The blond kunoichi sighed, and then smiled slightly. Her new co-worker resumed sweeping, seemingly not noticing her gaze. He had been like this since he started. Anyone who had work up the courage to talk to him was always so disappointed or frightened of his silence. It had been weeks after the invasion—weeks after her family had accepted him into their home, by order of the Hokage, and yet he was still so stiff and anti-social. But she had seen a change in him. During his stay, she had noticed that his expression softened… somewhat. His stare was no longer acidic. He no longer made her, or her parents, nervous.

The kunoichi went around the counter and walked toward her co-worker. She placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. The boy flinched at her touch. He still reacted badly to the simplest touches. Ino really hoped he would move pass that. She didn't know how much longer her mother would be able to restrain herself. In fact, last night for dinner—the very first night he had joined her family—he had wondered why they had said 'Itadakimasu' before eating. He had questioned this in a rather… cute way. Her father had to hold her mother back from wrapping the boy into a hug. "Gaara," Ino spoke. The red head turned to face her. "You know, you don't have to keep quiet. When others speak to you, you _can_ speak back." She knew that he was rather reticent, but he would have to start trying.

"Ino-san, I-"

"Who?"

"… Sorry, I meant Ino…"

"Oh, carry on."

"Ino, I find it hard to communicate with others." The red head looked away. "No one has ever spoken politely to me except Yashamaru, but in the end, that man betrayed me. I suppose… it is fear that keeps me from responding to strangers." Strangers—that's right. To him, Ino was not a stranger, but a self-proclaimed friend. He had no other choice but to reply to her, least she would scold him. Her parents were like that, too. It truly was a punishment to live with the three of them. Their personalities truly clashed with his. Just last night, he could have sworn the mother of this kunoichi tried to tackle him.

"Gaara, I kinda understand what you mean. You are traumatized and do not want to go through the same thing again." Ino turned him around to face her. "For some reason, you trust me, Naruto, and Sakura—and I'm glad for that. But you must learn to trust others, too. Don't let something in the past stop you from moving forward, okay?" Gaara did not respond. "I know it's easier said than done. I apologize." Ino tapped his shoulders twice. "But still, a little politeness goes a long way—trust me, Panda-chan!" She smiled brightly. It was similar to the smile his first friend gave him. She had also begun to call him that, but usually she called him by name. "Try greeting the next person to walk in."

If Gaara had eyebrows, Ino thought with a smirk, they would be furrowed. "I have to do this?" he questioned, frowning. The Yamanaka vigorously nodded her head. She then ranted about lacking 'people skills' as she went back behind the counter. Gaara sighed inaudibly. Hopefully, they wouldn't have anymore customers. The bell rang, signaling that luck was not on his side. Gaara slowly turned his head. His eyes were greeted by a young girl. The headband around her neck indicated that she was a ninja. She had soft, pale lavender eyes and short dark hair. Her cheeks were stained red. There was a slight smile on her face. Gaara recognized her as one of the kunoichi that participated in the chuunin exam. "… Good morning. Welcome to Yamanaka Flower Shop." His voice was barely above a whisper, but the girl's eyes flickered over to him; she had heard him.

The kunoichi blinked, and then smiled. She bowed her head slightly and returned the greeting. A squeal came from Ino, causing both of their heads to turn. "That was good, Gaara! Nice job!" The blond gave him a thumb up. The red head frowned—secretly relieved—and went back to sweeping. Ino grinned nervously. Well, it was a start. She turned her blue eyes back to the customer. "_Ah_, Hinata, what brings you here?" The delicate girl moved toward the counter, smiling lightly.

"I'm walking around the village. The doctors say it will help me to recover faster. I can't train or even run, but walking is okay to do." The Hyuga heir rested her hands on the counter. Ino nodded. She had heard that she and her cousin, Neji, were hurt in the invasion. Hinata even had a lung pierced, but someone managed to make it through. Ino was both happy and relieved to hear about this. "I have been walking, but I have yet to come across Sakura-chan. Do you happen to know where she is?" Ino gave a cheeky grin. Hinata unconsciously took a step back.

"Are you sure you don't want to know where _Naruto-kun _is?" Hinata's cheeks turned another brilliant shade of red as she stammered out a jumble of nonsense. Ino couldn't hold back her laughter if she tried. It was just too fun to tease the Hyuga princess about her crush. The Yamanaka female waved off her comrade's stutters. "Anyway, when I met with the Hokage, concerning Gaara's punishment, he told me that Sakura's team is currently outside the village. They shouldn't be back for awhile."

"Oh," Hinata seemed a bit disappointed at the information. She then looked up startled. Her eyes glanced over to the red head. "What do you mean by punishment?" she whispered.

Ino leaned closer and began whispering back. "Gaara's from the Sand village, but he wasn't killed for invading us. He is the son of the Kazekage, which is why he wasn't immediately killed. But then he said he didn't belong to the Sand, and disowned his family. He actually told the Hokage that he was loyal only to Naruto, Sakura, and me, and so we have to come up with his penalty. Those two decided to strip him of his ninja status. Without knowing that prior to my meeting with Hokage-sama, I said that he should be watched for awhile. Hokage-sama's final decision was to have Gaara move in with my family. When my father deems him trustworthy enough, his ninja status can be returned."

Hinata dipped her head slowly. She supposed that made sense. She turned toward the red head. He had moved over to a different spot to sweep. "Gaara-san," she called out to him. His head jerked up, hearing his name. "Any friend of Naruto-kun and Sakura-chan is a friend to me, too. I hope we will get along." Gaara narrowed his eyes. He wasn't glaring, but he did have a piercing stare. Hinata began to fill uncomfortable. She shifted her weight a bit and looked down.

"Gaara…!" Ino's whiny voice brought him out of his trance. He turned his sea green eyes toward the blond kunoichi. He looked almost confused.

"If you two are her friends, then why is it that you call her that?" he asked.

"Call her what?" Ino asked, becoming perplexed. She didn't think she had ever called Sakura forehead in front of Gaara.

"You call her by a different name. She told me to refer to her as Ma-" The ringing of the bell interrupted. He turned and greeted the customer in a robotic manner. "Good morning. Welcome to Yamanaka Flower Shop."

"Try to put more enthusiasm in it, Gaara. Jeez…" Ino muttered, flatly. "Oh! It's Sakura!" Hinata gasped as Ino made her way around the counter again. The two kunoichi walked up to her in greeting. "I thought you were with your team outside the village! Did you just get back?" It was then that she noticed the girl's appearance. "You washed the dye from your hair?"

"My team…?" Both Hinata and Ino seemed surprised by her voice. It was as if someone had sucked the life out of her. Gaara narrowed his eyes, remaining silent. "I no longer have a team. She stole them from me."

"_Hm_? What are you talking about, Sakura? Where's Naruto and Sasuke-kun?" Ino was shocked when her friend actually glared at her. She hadn't directed a glare her way since the Academy days. But what shocked her the most was the fact that this glare was cold and full of loathing. "Sa-Sakura…? What's the matter?"

"That girl… That thief stole my life away from me. How would you feel if that happened to you, Ino?"

"Sakura-chan, we don't understand what you mean…" Hinata spoke up. Sakura turned her callous green eyes to the Hyuga. She raised a pink eyebrow. Slowly, a smirk appeared on her face. "Is something the matter?"

"Yes, there is. A girl has been impersonating me since I became a ninja. Finally, I was able to return to my body not too long ago." The pink-haired girl's smirk grew, seeing the stunned faces of the two kunoichi. She then faked a frown. "But still, I could not regain what was originally mine. My team, my mother, and apparently my friends." Tears began flowing. To the other two girls, they were sad tears. "She took everything from me, and yet you talk of her like she's a god." The kunoichi turned to go. "I shouldn't have come."

"Sakura, wait…!" Ino's voice stopped her. Her back was turned, so the others couldn't see the grin. "What do you mean? What happened to you?"

"Tell us everything," Hinata said. "Please."

"… That girl… did horrible things," Sakura began.

--

Mayu stared at her teammate. Her eyebrows knitted together in concentration. A bead of sweat slide down her face and dripped from her chin. The blank stare that Sasuke was giving annoyed her. He was underestimating her like last time. He didn't believe that she would be able to succeed. She narrowed her eyes. The young kunoichi would definitely show him. Mayu moved forward. Sasuke didn't bat an eye. She smirked, and then made her move. The young Uchiha released a sigh at her dramatic antics. "Was _this_ your card?"

"For the last time, _no_…! You suck at this!"

"_Aww_…"

Suddenly a crash was heard, followed by a frustrated shout. Both Mayu and Sasuke sighed. These noises told them that Naruto had yet to master the Rasengan. "You really think he's going to master that jutsu by tomorrow?" The Uchiha picked at the small fire and took a glance over to his blond teammate. Naruto was lying down, staring up at the night sky, gasping to catch his breath. Mayu turned her eyes to the deck of cards in her hand before shuffling them.

"Who knows…? He just might pull it off." The kunoichi showed him a card. Sasuke immediately glared at her. "Fine, fine…" she muttered, setting the cards on the ground. "I'm just bored. We haven't trained since Naruto made that bet with Tsunade-sama." Mayu stood up, patting her numb legs. She had been sitting on them for awhile now. "I'm going into town." She began to walk away, faltering slightly as she went.

"Why?" Sasuke called after her.

"None of your business!" Mayu waved without turning back. "Probably won't be back, so take Naruto to the hotel whenever he passes out!"

"Hey!" An indignant shout came from the blond.

"See you guys later!"

--

Mayu breathed out slowly, concentrating. A blue glow engulfed her hand, indicating that she was assembling chakra. The kunoichi narrowed her eyes as she watched the small fire she had created. Frowning, she stuck her naked hand in the blaze. The flames licked at her skin, causing her to grimace. She immediately pulled her hand out. The genin hastily rubbed hands together, breathing into them. "What should I do, Nana-chan?" The flames danced in her eyes as she gazed into the fire. "Normal fire still burns me. Imagine what chakra-enhanced fire will do to me." Mayu sighed heavily as she brought her knees to her chin. "I'm still such a long way from reaching mother or uncle's level. I'm so far from being a Master Ishikari."

Nana's response was a yawn. Mayu chuckled lightly. She knew her feline partner was tired, but in order for Nana to start speaking the human tongue, she needed to feed off her chakra. The black leopard couldn't do such a thing if she wasn't near the kunoichi for a long period of time. Mayu turned her eyes back to the crackling flames. Again, she sighed. Her mother and uncle were probably the greatest masters, in her mind at least. Both were so strong—equally strong, in fact. Her uncle had told her that they had once fought one another with all they had. Neither had been a winner. In the back of her mind, Mayu had wanted to see that fight badly. But sadly, it had happened before her mother was pregnant. The kunoichi had—and still—wanted to be just like her mother. _"But the way I'm progressing, that goal-"_ She looked down at the burns on her hand. _"-seems to be out of my reach."_

It was pathetic to think that way, especially since her teammates were working hard to become stronger, but she couldn't help it. She had never felt so… _feeble_ before. Back when she's was in Sakura's body, she was practically fearless. And who wouldn't? With twice the power, anyone would feel invincible. But now… Mayu closed her eyes. But now, she doubted she could fight like before. The kunoichi rubbed her temple. This was no time for self-aversion. She needed to be strong, not only for her team but for herself as well.

The sound of a twig snapping caused Mayu to lift her head. Nana, too, had done the same. She growled, sensing the presence of another other than her partner. The two stood, glaring into the darkness. "Who's there?" Mayu called out. A figure stepped out of the shadow of the trees. She recognized the person as Tsunade's traveling companion, Shizune. "What do you want?" Mayu turned back to the fire, knowing she wasn't really a threat to her. The woman had come to her team once before after Naruto had agreed to Tsunade's bet. She had wanted to explain to her Naruto why it was a bad idea to bargain with that necklace. She even told him an angst-like story behind the necklace. Long story short, both she and Sasuke sent the woman off with rude comments. Tsunade had lost two lives that she held dear. But they had lost _many_ in only one night. They didn't want to hear a sob story that couldn't possible compare to the pain that they had felt. For that reason, it was rather strange that she had come to her, and her alone.

"Why aren't you with your teammates?" The woman moved closer to the kunoichi. Mayu glared, not in the mood for small talk. She wanted to know Shizune had come to her—now. The woman must have picked up on the girl's disposition. She ditched the polite smile. "Alright then… I want to know why you seem to loathe Tsunade-sama." Mayu remained silent. "I know that you also threw a kunai at her. And after that, you even spoke rudely of her and her past. What is your reason for this?" Shizune glared at the younger female. "I won't permit anyone to speak ill of Tsunade-sama!" It was silent for a few moments.

"Are you finished?" Mayu snorted lightly. "As for your questions, she was being a bitch." The young kunoichi noticed the way Shizune's hands clenched at her sides. "You know this is true. Not only did she insult my teammate, but she also insulted the Hokage name. Any other ninja from the Leaf would have done the same, if not more."

"She wasn't always like that! She has suffered greatly because of the loss of-"

"So have I." Mayu crossed her arms. "I'm pretty sure everyone has lost something, but that doesn't give them the right to take it out on everyone else. She's been through pain—so has the rest of the world, and yet the world moves on."

Shizune turned her dark eyes to the ground. "You… You just don't understand her." Her eyebrows knitted together. "Her pain is far worse than anything you can imagine."

"You assume the wrong thing. Sasuke and I—and even Naruto have her beat in that department." Shizune turned her eyes back to her. "I lost my entire clan. Sasuke lost his entire clan. Naruto… has never even had a clan or a family to begin with." The young Ishikari showed her teeth. She was not smiling. "Tell me… What right do you have to _compare_ our pain?!"

Shizune's stance faltered as she stared at Mayu. The girl was trembling as if she was truly angry. But she couldn't be. What she said had to be a lie. Shizune knew about the Uchiha clan, and she knew about Naruto holding the Kyuubi—well, she had heard stories, at least. However, she had not heard of another clan of the Leaf village dying. Mayu turned her back on the woman. She kicked some dirt into the fire, putting it out.

"If you came to me, wanting me to feel sorry for that hag, then you're just downright stupid." She gestured for Nana to follow. It wasn't that she hated Tsunade. She had just lost respect for the woman. Just watching from behind the fourth wall was definitely not the same as experiencing. The Sanin's previous words had really struck a nerve. "Now, if you have nothing more to say, then I shall take my leave."

"Wait a moment!" Shizune called. Mayu stopped, curious. "Are you really from the Leaf village?" The kunoichi turned her head slightly, perplexed by her question. She answered, nonetheless. "You say that your clan died, but that's not true. The only report of a dead clan from the Leaf is the Uchiha clan. No other clan from the village has perished." The woman narrowed her eyes. "Just who are you?"

"… You wouldn't know about my clan. Only a few knew about it." Shizune shook her head and repeated her question. "Ishikari Mayu of the Hidden Leaf Village." The woman's dark eyes widen. She could have sworn she heard that surname somewhere else before. She gasped lightly when the memory hit her.

_Sorry for my rudeness. I am Ishikari Morino of the Hidden Leaf Village._

Shizune frowned. So this girl was related to that man, huh? The two did share the same complexion. He had been much more polite, although a bit eccentric. "Now I know you're lying." Her statement caused the young Ishikari to face her. "There might be a clan of the Leaf known as Ishikari, but they're not dead. You don't have to tell lies in order to make others feel sorry for you." Mayu practically snarled at the woman. Nana growled angrily.

"Who the hell are you to make that assumption?!"

"It's not an assumption. It's a fact. Just a few months back, I met a man who went by the name of Ishikari."

Mayu froze. Her mouth dropped open, shocked. Her eyebrows disappeared behind her bangs. Hopeful incredulity filled her eyes. Shizune was startled by the sudden change in the girl's expression. "You… You met my uncle…? Ishikari Morino? Uncle Mori?" Despite her earlier anger, her eyes welled up with tears. In all honesty, she believed that she wouldn't get to see her uncle ever again. She had even thought him to be dead like the rest of the family. She knew he had not died on that night on the count that he was away on a mission, but she had assumed that he eventually died as well, which was why he wasn't in the village. Mayu stepped forward. "You really met my uncle? Tell me where he is. Where did you see him?"

"That… That isn't the point I was trying to make. The point was that you shouldn't lie to people about something like that!" Shizune did not answer her question. Mayu glared at the woman.

"I wasn't lying! Uncle Mori and I are the only Ishikari members alive right now! Tell him where you've seen him!"

The older female involuntarily took a step back. The girl was getting riled up again. Perhaps she had been wrong… Now that she was thinking about it, that man had mentioned a niece during their short meeting. He hadn't mentioned anyone else, though. "I… I am sorry for assuming." She bowed. It was the least she could do. It was rude of her to judge and guess.

"Forget all that! Please tell me where you've seen him!" Mayu pleaded. Shizune blinked, surprised again by her shifting of emotions.

"I doubt he's still there, but we met in the Bird Country."

"The Bird Country…?" Mayu repeated. Her blue eyes fell to the ground. She looked to be deep in thought.

Shizune shifted uncomfortable. For some reason, she felt a bit awkward. Well, she did come to the girl intending to take back her words. In the end, it was she who had to take back her own words. It was… embarrassing to do so, especially to a young child. "Well then… I will leave you now." The woman disappeared before Mayu could give a response—not that she was paying attention. She was much too focused that her uncle was alive and well. He was… alive.

"Uncle…" A tear slipped out of her eye. The kunoichi clenched her fist, determined. _"You've just given me another reason for become stronger."_ She sniffed, and then looked towards her feline partner. Mayu grinned, and then dramatically pointed in a random direction. "Nana-chan…! We're going to do our best to catch up with Uncle Mori and Mizuiro!"

The black leopard gave a roar of agreement.

--

Sasuke felt himself growling as he waited for his eyesight stop being so blurry and for the feeling to return to his body. That old hag had been fast. He barely comprehended the punch to his gut. Hell, it might not have been a punch. He grimaced as his hand caressed his torso. Finally, his eyesight had returned. He stared up at the ceiling for a moment before sitting up—or at least trying to. Confused, the young Uchiha looked over his shoulder. To his surprise, there laid his teammate's head. It was no wonder, his arm felt numb. Slowly, he pulled his arm away. "When the hell…?" he murmured. Sasuke stood up. His dark eyes spotted that woman, Shizune on the floor, apparently knocked out. "Must've gotten her, too."

He had barely heard the conversation between the two women last night, but they had been talking about Orochimaru and some type of offer. He should have been paying more attention since the subject was on that snake bastard. Sasuke turned back to his sleeping teammate. He reached over and smacked his head. "Hey…! What the hell, Sasuke?!" Naruto woke up with a start. The blond had fallen unconscious last night a little after their other teammate ditched them. He had been that way the last time he'd seen him. He had heard from the busty Sanin that Naruto should have slept for a few days, but he knew better. Chakra exhaustion wasn't something that would keep the hyperactive blond down.

"Shut up. We've got a problem."

"Problem…?" Naruto repeated. His eyes moved past Sasuke's body. "When did Mayu come back?" Startled by the question, Sasuke whirled around. The blond was right. Their teammate had returned. When—he couldn't say. She was sprawled on the other bed with a drizzle of drool coming from her mouth. He narrowed his eyes as he moved over to the bed. Because she was on the bed, to him that meant Jiraiya never came back. The Uchiha shoved the girl's shoulder, telling her to wake up. "Hey! How come _I_ got smacked and _she_ just got a gentle touch?" Sasuke gave the blond a rude hand gesture as the kunoichi slowly sat up.

"Hey, guys, what's up?" She rubbed the slobber from her chin. Yawning, she looked around. "What time is it?"

"Never mind that right now. Didn't you find it strange that a woman is unconscious on the floor?" Sasuke asked. "Did you just come and fall asleep without noticing?"

"No, I saw it. You were on the floor, too."

"Then why didn't you do anything?"

"… Thought she was drunk and passed out. She smelled like sake. And I thought Naruto had kicked you from the bed again, so I put you back." The Uchiha flushed.

"That _wasn't_ necessary!"

"What the hell are you two talking abo—hey, she really _is_ on the floor!" Naruto jumped from the bed and went over to the woman. Sasuke and Mayu did the same. "Hey. Hey!" The blond shook Shizune. After a few moments of this, the woman's eyes finally opened.

She stared at the three genin before gasping loudly. She sprang up and frantically looked around. "Shit! What time is it?!" After glancing around, Shizune focused her eyes on the team of three. "No! What day of the week is it?!" Startled by her strange hysterical behavior, Naruto hesitantly answered.

"Monday…"

"Wow, someone must've been _really_ hammered last night." A smack to the head came from her teammate.

"You idiot! The sake smell came from that other woman!"

"I'm… so confused," Naruto complained.

"Wait a minute… Your body is fine already?" Shizune asked. Finally, it appeared as if she calmed down. "You should have slept for two days." Mayu scoffed at that.

"Naruto won't waste time sleeping."

"Yeah, after a little bit of rest, my body recovers. I've been like this ever since I was born." Naruto flexed his fingers and grinned proudly. He then got serious. "Anyway, where's that old hag? Today's the deadline for our bet!"

Mayu turned excited eyes on her blond teammate. "So you've finally learned the Rasengan, Naruto? That's so awesome!" Naruto chuckled nervously as he rubbed the back of his head.

"He didn't." Sasuke answered for him.

"It's not complete _yet_! But I can still hope to get it right in front of her!" The blond had the nerve to have conviction in his voice. Sasuke rolled his eyes as Shizune chuckled. Her actions only made the pain in her gut to increase. She grimaced, and then looked towards the window before moving.

"You three stay here!" Shizune slid over the window, preparing to leap out. Just as she was about to, a kunai whizzed pass her head and embedded itself into the pipe outside the building. Her eyes grew wide before turning to the where the kunai came from. "You're…" A hand slid the window open further, and three more heads popped out.

"Pervy Sage…!" The three genin were shocked to find their temporary guardian. He looked absolutely awful. His breathing was erratic and strained. Sweat covered his face. They could tell he was exhausted. He slowly and shakily held his hand out and told the four to wait. The group quickly jumped out of the window and crowded around the Sanin. Both Naruto and Sasuke helped Jiraiya sit down with his back against the wall. "What happened to you?"

"That damn hag poisoned him from what I can tell," Sasuke answered before Jiraiya could. "She knocked me out last night—her too—and then left."

"_Ah_… So that's what happened…"

"You." Sasuke glared at Tsunade's attendant. "You're going to tell us exactly what deal that snake bastard made with that hag—_now_." Three more pairs of eyes turned to Shizune expectedly. The woman put her head down ashamed. Perhaps believing in Tsunade was a mistake.

"I…" She placed on hands on her stomach. "I will have to explain on the way! We're running out of time. Please follow me!"

"We're coming, too!"

--

Kabuto grimaced as he narrowly missed the kunai by falling back. Damn—and he had almost had her. He was sure that he had taken Tsunade by surprise when he moved so quickly after she had messed with his nervous system. The thought made him smirk. She shouldn't have underestimated him, Sanin or not. Kabuto was just about to expose the woman's weakness, but a smoke bomb came between him and his victim. He had jumped back. If he hadn't, a kunai would have been impaled in his head. "Naruto, do it!" Kabuto's eyes grew wide. However, since there was damage to his nervous system, he couldn't even turn around.

He felt a hit to the back of his head, sending him flying forward. Next, the hit came from below him, forcing his body up high. Hands wrapped around his ponytail. His body was to twirl with the body of another. "**Uzumaki's Seismic Body Toss**!" Kabuto's nose smashed against the unyielding force of the ground.

Naruto flipped back over to his teammates, glaring at Kabuto's twitching form. So Mayu had been right all along. He recognized the silver-haired man from the chuunin exam. He had tried to befriend their team, but Mayu was quick to distrust him—and with good reason. If that headband of his was any indication, this man had been working with Orochimaru the entire time. He must have been a spy for whatever village they now hailed from. It pissed him off that he probably would have fallen for Kabuto's innocent act if it had not been for his attentive teammate. The sight of blood flowing from his nose, however, brought him some approval. The blond stood up straight, breathing through his mouth.

"It's been a short time, Jiraiya." Orochimaru smirked as he spoke to his former teammate and rival. "I didn't think we would meet so soon after… what happened."

"And yet you still have that evil look in your eyes." The toad Sanin gave a smirk of his own. "After that _humiliating_ defeat, you'd think you would have been slightly depressed." The snake Sanin's smirk turned into a frown. His golden, snake-like eyes shifted over to the genin beside his ex-comrade. The smirk came back, and with it his tongue. Orochimaru licked his lips, staring at the boy that had his full attention.

"Hello again, Sasuke-kun."

Mayu could feel her teammate's body tense and shiver. She had to keep herself from snarling in Orochimaru's general direction. That, though, did not stop her face from twisting into an expression of fury. How dare that snake bastard refer to Sasuke like that? As far as she was concerned, he didn't have the right. Mayu watched as his eyes moved from Sasuke to Naruto, commenting on the Nine-Tailed fox, before turning his focus on her. There was no recognition in his eyes. If anything, he seemed confused. _"Of course he does." _The only time Orochimaru had seen her was in the body of Haruno Sakura. He had actually stated that he was interested in her because of her ability to copy bloodlines. There was no reason for her to draw attention to her real name. It would be safer if Orochimaru believed that she was an unknown kunoichi. _"That means I won't be able to use my jutsu—damn it."_

Without warning, Tsunade broke out of her startled dazed. She pushed passed Jiraiya, knocking him over. She darted toward Kabuto, exclaiming that she would be the one to defeat both him and Orochimaru. Sasuke scoffed, watching the woman attack Kabuto. _"That isn't likely." _For some reason, she was not using her strength behind her punches and kicks. Not only that, but her movements were slower—much slower than last night or when she played around with Naruto. Sasuke narrowed his eyes as Tsunade finally cornered Kabuto. Suddenly, however, the man grabbed a kunai and slit his own wrist. Blood spewed from his wound, spraying Tsunade. Her hands, chest, and face had been hit. Furrowing his eyebrows together, Sasuke wondered why the woman suddenly froze… as if she was afraid. Then it hit him. Shizune had said something about Tsunade having a fear of blood. A ninja having a fear of blood was just absurd. He hadn't believed her, but actually watching the fear in the Sanin's expression was enough to convince him.

With one punch, Kabuto sent the older woman flying into the arms of Shizune. The Uchiha watched this all unimpressed. "Some Sanin…" he muttered, turning his attention back to Kabuto. As a matter of fact, all three of the Sanin seemed to be not at full strength. Even Orochimaru looked as if he should rather be lying in bed. He didn't need his Sharingan to see that. Naruto suddenly yelled out and started charging at Kabuto. Sasuke sighed. "Mayu…"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm on it."

The kunoichi dashed forward, ignoring Jiraiya's cries for her to halt. In terms of speed, Mayu was faster than her blond teammate. She caught up to him quicker than anyone thought she would. Using Naruto's shoulders as a balance beam, Mayu flipped over her teammate. This action startled the blond shinobi so much that he stopped, unknowingly shooting the girl further right toward Kabuto. The Ishikari landed near the older ninja on her hand. The momentum of her movements brought her foot down, about to smash against Kabuto's head. Seeing this intent, the silver-haired man moved his left arm up to block her foot. What he hadn't counted on was Mayu putting her other hand on the ground and twisting her body at the last second. Her right leg swung and knocked into Kabuto's right side at the neck. The man was sent soaring away by the force behind the attack.

Mayu stood up straight and smirked. She knew that his right side was left vulnerable from his earlier stunt against Tsunade. She also knew that the slug Sanin had done _something_—she couldn't remember what—to his nerve system. The girl slowly pointed a finger at Orochimaru. The man raised an eyebrow. "Just because you are Sanin-" She pointed to Kabuto, who was rubbing the painful crook in his neck. "And just because you _might_ be as strong as Kakashi-sensei-" The kunoichi grinned. "-doesn't mean you can underestimate me or my team!" She looked toward her two teammates. "Naruto! Sasuke!" The two young shinobi looked her way. "Let's make some noise!"

"_Hell_ yeah!" Naruto formed a hand sign. "**Shadow Clone Jutsu**!" Four clones surrounded him. He moved his hand forward, ordering his clones to launch an attack. "Go!" he exclaimed sending them off toward Kabuto. Sasuke smirked.

"Let's do it then." Like his teammates, he, too, ignored Jiraiya's cries of protests. The young Uchiha quickly moved, running behind the clones, as did Mayu.

Kabuto dropped into a defensive stance as he watched the clones, and the other two genin race towards him. This situation was truly unexpected. Though he knew he could quickly dispose of the Naruto clones—even Naruto, himself—the other two oncoming ninja made him chary in his movements. One, he knew nothing about. Her strengths, weakness—even her identity were unknown to him. The other one he knew of—Uchiha Sasuke. Out of all of them, Kabuto was sure that he was the most talented of the three. If the team actually fought together with him, his chances of surviving would slip, especially since his body wasn't working probably. Cursing the slug Sanin, the Sound ninja moved forward. He decided that he had to get rid of the clones, and then attack Sasuke. Once he was incapacitated, he would kill the other two. Kabuto smirked as he rushed forward. He would take great delectation in paying Naruto back for his nose.

Mayu suddenly halted and looked back at her teammate. Sasuke stopped beside her. They both nodded before turning to where Kabuto was fending off the clones. Quickly, the two genin made their hand signs. "**Fire Style**-" The Sound ninja blocked a punch and looked over to them with wide eyes. "-**Great Fireball Jutsu**!" The two powerful fire attacks actually combined to create an even stronger and bigger ball of fire. Kabuto could only stare in at the attack in astonishment. The ball was so big and fast that no matter which way he went, he would still get hit by it. The clones had only been a distraction.

The fireball destroyed and scorched the ground on its way to the Sound ninja. Four separate puffs of smoke signaled that the clones had been obliterated, meaning the flames had reached Kabuto as well. Slowly the fireball disappeared, leaving practically nothing in its wake—nothing except the smoldering, burnt ground. Sasuke raised a brow. Could the combined fire attacks really burn a person's body out of existence? "Something seems… wrong." The young Uchiha narrowed his eyes. That's all he needed to hear to confirm his suspicions. He turned his onyx eyes toward his blond teammate.

"Naruto!"

The blond, startled by his comrade's frantic voice, suddenly felt compelled to move toward him. The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end. Instinctively, Naruto flipped away from the spot where he was standing. In his handstand, he saw that hands, along with Kabuto's head were sticking out of the ground. The Sound ninja's hands were encased in a glow of chakra. He had been planning to do some weird, freaky jutsu to him! "You _missed_!" Naruto twisted and jerk his body, making his left heel collide with Kabuto's face.

Mayu grimaced, hearing the crunch that echoed throughout the clearing. "Nice one, Naruto. I actually saw teeth go flying." The blond landed in between his two teammates. He grinned at the kunoichi. She turned her blue eyes back to Kabuto, whose body had fully come out of the ground. Both of his hands covered his face. Muffled groans of pain came from behind his hands. "Seriously, though, that's a lot of blood. Serves him right, I suppose. That bastard shouldn't have tried to attack us."

"How can you say that with a smile? Just what kinda person are you?" Sasuke produced a flat look. Mayu only laughed at his expression.

The Sound ninja let out ragged breaths as he slowly stood. This was not good. Naruto was proving to be more _challenging_ than he originally thought. And with his body the way it was, things didn't seem to be to going in his favor. _"I have to retreat for now. Sasuke-kun is smart; he won't dare attack while I'm by Orochimaru's side. He'll stop his teammates, too."_ Kabuto narrowed his eyes, focusing on the kunoichi of the team. Ignoring his dripping blood for a moment, he tried to think back. Naruto or Sasuke hadn't said her name yet, or given any type of clue to who she was. It was clear that she was not the original kunoichi on Team 7, Haruno Sakura. _"I must find out who she is." _Kabuto leapt over to his leader, causing the three genin to shift their focus back over to him. Damn brats had the _nerve_ to start a conversation and completely ignore him.

"_Hm_… It appears that you're having trouble, Kabuto." The snake Sanin chuckled. Continuing to pant, Kabuto pulled out a single bead-like item. He rolled it between his finger and thumb, toying with the idea of using it right now. Of course, he needed it. He had lost far too much blood. He popped it in his mouth a bit down.

"Food pill…?" Naruto murmured. "Oh, that's just great!" He looked back and forth between his teammates. "Please tell me we have some of our own?"

"No, we don't." Mayu shook her head.

"I _did_ have some, but they _somehow_ mysteriously _disappeared_ after _you two_ spent the night over." Sasuke was obviously pointing the finger, causing his comrades to chuckle nervously. "Anyway, I still think we could all take Kabuto on even if he does have pills. The problem is Orochimaru. I don't want to tangle with him again if I don't have to." Mayu nodded in agreement. "I say, for now at least, that we head over to the pervert and see what he has planned, and then act accordingly."

"Sounds boring, but okay." Naruto also nodded in agreement. The team of three swiftly moved, stopping when they reached Jiraiya's side.

"You little brats," he greeted. He then gave a small smile. "But I must say that I was impressed."

"Of course you were! We're badass, after all!" Naruto gave a cheeky grin.

"Now's not the time to be cocky, however. You three are still way out of your league." And just like that, the toad Sanin shot them down. "I will fight Orochimaru. Shizune, I leave four-eyes to you." The dark-haired woman nodded as she stood in front of a shivering Tsunade. "But before we get started, I want Tsunade to heal me."

"It can't be helped… it will take awhile before the effects of that poison wears off." Shizune's blunt response caused Jiraiya to freak out momentarily.

"Oh well, I guess I have to fight him as I am," he said.

"What about us?" Naruto questioned. Jiraiya looked at the three pairs of inquiring eyes. "I mean, what can we do?"

"You three… stay put and protect Tsunade-hime and the pig."

The three genin instantly deadpanned.

Ignoring their expressions, Jiraiya turned to Orochimaru and Kabuto. "Now let's get this started!" He bit his thumb, drawing the blood necessary to complete the jutsu. Kabuto wiped blood on the arm of Orochimaru. At the same time, the two slammed their hand against the ground. "**Ninja Art: Summoning Jutsu**!" The enemy summoned two giant brown snakes—their sizes were the same as the one in the second stage of the chuunin exam. On the other side, Jiraiya had summoned… a tiny, orange toad.

"I shit you not." Sasuke's eyebrow twitched as his teammate pointed at the small thing.

"You want to fight Orochimaru with _Gamakichi_? What the hell?! Even Naruto can summon his father!"

"Yeah!" Naruto bit his thumb. If Jiraiya couldn't do it in his state, then he would have to summon the Chief Toad for him. He'd done it before, he could do it again! Quickly, he made the proper hand signs. "**Ninja Art: Summoning Jutsu**!" He pressed against the dirt with his hand, looking determined. For his efforts, he received a toad as big as Gamakichi. Mayu's face hit the ground in a classic anime fall.

"You make it _real_ hard to give compliments, Naruto… real hard."

"Hi, everybody!" The new toad seemed a bit… air-headed. Through the bickering between the new toad and Gamakichi, it was discovered that his name was Gamatatsu and he was the younger brother of Gamakichi, meaning he was another child of Gamabunta.

"They're coming…!" Sasuke's warning, causing the ninja to become alert and move away. The two snakes crashed into the ground where they once stood. The ground cracked and crumbled under the weight the two giant snakes, causing debris and dust to obscure vision. _"A separation tactic…?" _The young Uchiha immediately activated his advanced bloodline, only to shut it off again. He didn't want to waste any chakra on the unnecessary. Pretty soon, the dust would disappear. The Uchiha heard Jiraiya call out to his blond teammate, meaning he was in danger. "Damn it!" Sasuke landed on the ground. Somehow, a swamp appeared, trapping the two snakes. It most likely was a jutsu that came from the old man. He jumped back, narrowing dodging a snake head. The giant brown snake hissed at him, and then slowly sank into the mud.

"Well, that was close!" Sasuke whirled around to see his female teammate surveying the damage. She turned her blue eyes his way. "Come on—while everyone's distracted!" The kunoichi grabbed her teammate's wrist and dragged him behind a large stone, hiding them from view of the others.

"Why are we hiding?" Sasuke peeked over the top of the boulder. The other ninja seemed not to realize that the battle was missing two people. "And where did you go? I didn't sense you in the clash."

"Are you kidding me?" Mayu gave him a look of disbelief. She scoffed, causing the Uchiha to turn to her, annoyed. "As if I'd willingly go into a place where I'm virtually _blind_! I was standing next to the dust cloud, shaking my head because of everyone else's actions." Sasuke flushed, slightly embarrassed because apart of him knew that what she said was a bit logical.

"I can't believe you manage to pull it off," he murmured, turning his eyes back to the fight. The fight between the two weakened Sanin didn't prove to be very interesting. What he was more focused on was Shizune and Kabuto—the former was losing miserably. Pretty soon, they'd have to be the ones to step in.

"Pull what off?" She, too, had her eyes on the fight between Shizune and Kabuto. A sigh escaped her lips, disappointed at the display of so called kunoichi power—from _both_ women.

"You're smart, but you sound stupid when you talk."

"Well, thanks—hey, wait a minute!"

"You guys are both… dumbasses."

A groan reached the ears of the two genin, preventing an argument. Their eyes moved left and right, and then down. Naruto was on the other side of the boulder, lying on the ground and holding his stomach. A glare was focused on Kabuto, who had stopping messing around with Shizune and focused his beatings on a weak and defenseless Sanin. "Naruto…? When did you get there?"

"Are you blind?! How could you two not see a giant snake slamming me against the rock that you're _hiding_ behind…?!"

"Whoops…"

Naruto sighed heavily, causing friction. He winced at the pain. "What are we going to do? We can't let her keep getting hurt by this bastard!" Tsunade's screams and pleas of protest, begging for Kabuto to stop only further pissed him off. "What kinda man-"

"Cool it, Naruto!" Sasuke ordered. "What we need to do now is to think with our heads. But I know that you suck in that area." Ignoring the heated stare being directed at him, the Uchiha turned to his female comrade. "That means you're up, Mayu. You can use either my body if you need to. Naruto looks like he's not going to be able to move effectively for a few minutes." The kunoichi did not respond. "Hey, what's the matter?"

"… I'm not switching with you. It would probably be better to go on offense with two Sharingan users on our side, but… I can't do that at the moment."

"Is something wrong with your jutsu?" Naruto asked. Mayu shook her head.

"No, nothing like that." She closed her eyes for a moment. "I just can't use it when those two are around. I don't want them getting any ideas."

"I see…" Sasuke frowned.

"But I do have a plan, so listen up."

--

Yakushi Kabuto stared down at the woman. She was weak, useless—defeated. She had not even tried to block or evade his kicks and punches. The so called Sanin, who was Orochimaru former teammate, was so substandard. Hell, she didn't even scream anymore. The silver-haired ninja played with the idea of piercing her skin just to hear the frightening screams that he knew she would let out. But he couldn't possibly do that no matter how fun it would be to watch. His master's arms and legs still needed to be fixed. It was only a matter of time before the medicine would wear off. This woman was the only one who could cure him of that strange poison. Tsunade needed to be sharp and precise when she healed, not traumatized and scared by just the mere sight. No, it was best to just leave her unconscious for the moment. Making her bleed would probably break her.

Tsunade shivered, looking away from him. It was almost as if she was accepting whatever happened. Such disenchantment, Kabuto thought. He curled his fingers into a fist. He would finish her with one last punch. Playing around with someone who didn't even fight back had lost its thrill. He pulled back his arm, preparing to strike her. However, a kunai suddenly embedded itself in the ground between him and Tsunade. Upon closer inspection, Kabuto saw a note attached to the weapon. _"Explosive note…!"_ Eyes widening, he quickly jumped away from area.

Instead of exploding, the note attached only swayed in the wind. Kabuto narrowed his eyes as the young unknown kunoichi appeared in front of Tsunade. She had an arrogant grin. "As if I'd actually put my future in harm's way." She pointed a finger at Kabuto. "Get any closer, and that will be the last action you take." The Sound ninja only chuckled.

"_Ah_, it would seem as if you've slipped my mind." The man smirked. "But I assure you, you're no match for me."

"Oh really…" Mayu crossed her arms. "Do you honestly think that the Third Hokage would place me on a team with the Kyuubi and the last of the Uchiha just to be a placeholder? I've got my own little secret." Kabuto's eyebrows knitted together as if he were considering that, so the kunoichi continued. "With my abilities I can easily contain theirs. Imagine what I'll do to you if _you_ attack." From the distance, she could see sweat slide down the man's face. She continued. "I am Haruno Sakura's replacement because of this. It is my mission to be on this team. Do you think a mere _genin_ could live up to controlling the Sharingan and the Nine-tailed beast? The Hokage has even compared me to Uchiha Itachi and let's just say he wasn't talking personality-wise."

"Who are you?"

"Like I'd be stupid enough to give out that information… Why don't you be a good little subordinate and stand down?" To her surprise, however, Kabuto began to walk forward.

"Nice try, little girl, but your bluff is not working on me." As he spoke, he did not stop his movements. "I am very confident in my abilities, so even if you were speaking the truth, I wouldn't hesitate to try. Uchiha Itachi just happens to be a person that I want to fight."

"Well, isn't that just perfect?" Mayu almost rolled her eyes. Kabuto suddenly broke into a run, arm pulled back ready to punch. _"Anytime, guys…!"_

"Show me what you've got!" Instead of hitting Mayu's surprised/scared face, Kabuto ended up hitting Naruto's headband. The blond genin glared at the Sound ninja absolutely pissed. Not only was he mercilessly attacking the old woman, but he also had the nerve to try to hit his teammate. Ignoring the blood leaking because of the impact, Naruto mentally swore revenge. "Naruto-kun…!"

"You son of a _bitch_!" The blond gathered chakra in his palm with his right hand. This was it! He was definitely going to do it this time! With a battle cry, Naruto shot forward.

Kabuto was momentarily startled by whatever new attack that his opponent had learned. But he knew that all he had to do was dodge it. He shifted his body to the left while gathering chakra in his hand. As Naruto missed and passed him, Kabuto tapped the back of the young shinobi's leg. The genin fell to the ground as the Sound ninja stopped. Kabuto turned, smirking callously, knowing that such a big motion wouldn't be able to hit anyone who had enough sense to move. "It seems that your battle with the snake cracked your bone." Naruto response, to his utter surprise, was wearing a grin.

"Forgetting something…?"

The Sound ninja's eyes expanded. He _had_ forgotten! Kabuto turned around sharply, only to get hit by the blunt end of a kunai between his eyes. "_Distraction_, bitch!" The kunoichi followed up with a swinging kick to his chest. The startled ninja staggered backwards. He rubbed his torso and coughed. That girl had a surprisingly strong foot. "Sasuke!" Again, Kabuto's eyes grew wide. His instincts told him to move. The man quickly jumped back, narrowly dodging Sasuke, who had broke free from the dirt beneath his feet with Chidori in hand. Although the Uchiha's initial attack did not work, that did not stop him from running after the Sound ninja. He flipped, dived, and jumped away from the lightning-based attack. He saw the damage that it could do, and that was not something he wanted to happen to him. Getting tired of running away, Kabuto shot forward, startling his pubescent enemy. He swatted his arm away, making the Uchiha lose his concentration, causing the Chidori to disappear. After summoning his chakra scalpel, he smacked Sasuke's chest.

Sasuke fell to the ground coughing, holding his throat. _"I can't breathe…!"_ He heard the victorious laughter of Kabuto and it pissed him off. The man turned his eyes to his female teammate. _"This is bad."_

"_Heh_… What will you do now that I've crippled your team, girl?" Mayu chose not to answer. The plan had just gone sour. She had underestimated Kabuto's agility. And because of that both Sasuke and Naruto were practically useless. "You don't have to answer that. I know exactly what you'll do." The kunoichi narrowed her eyes. "Kill Naruto-kun."

"What?! Are you stupid? There's no way that I will!"

"Do it, or Sasuke-kun dies." Mayu clenched her teeth. Of course… Kabuto wasn't physically holding her teammate hostage, but he did hold his life in his hands. "You know very well that I can save him, but now… his life is slipping away. Kill Naruto-kun or I will not fix Sasuke-kun's lungs." Mayu nearly growled.

"Fuck you! Get yourself another idiot! I won't do it!" She charged at the Sound ninja, intending to give him hell.

Kabuto only smirked. Young ninja were amusing. "Very well then… I will take you out first. If you try to attack me, I will kill Naruto-kun, and then Sasuke-kun right before your very eyes." The kunoichi halted at his words. Sweat slid down her face. Using her clan's jutsu would really be helpful right about now, but she couldn't. They would know and _constantly_ be after her. There was also the fear of not getting to her teammates in time if she unleashed a counterattack. The girl's body went limp. She bowed her head in acquiesce. "Good girl." Kabuto advanced forward. "You are the type who cares more about her friends than her own safety. Truly pathetic…"

Sasuke and Naruto could only watch helplessly as Kabuto slowly walked toward their teammate. _"If my leg wasn't…"_ Naruto gritted his teeth as the sick bastard moved closer. His fingers gripped the dirt, creating small trenches. _"Please move, Mayu! You don't have to do this!"_ He violently shook as Kabuto stood in front of his motionless teammate.

"You know something… You made a mistake." The Sound ninja grinned. He punched her. Mayu lost her balance and fell to the ground. "You die to protect them." He kicked her twice, creating the satisfying crunching noises. The kunoichi groaned, holding her side. Kabuto grabbed her hair, pulling her back up. "You die to know that they will live on and make something of themselves, but… in the end you sacrificing your own life does not change the way this will all turn out." He struck her nose, almost breaking it. Blood flowed from her nostrils. He grinned, deciding to let gravity deal with the girl. Kabuto dropped her on the ground. He took out a kunai. The projectile in his hand hovered over the kunoichi's throat. He released the handle causing the kunai began to descend. "I _will_ kill Naruto-kun and take Sasuke-kun away!"

_CLANG_

Instead of piercing flesh, the girl moved her body at the last possible moment, making the sharp end of the kunai to hit the metal part of her headband. It fell near the side of her head harmlessly. "You underrate my feelings toward this team." Mayu slowly sat up, glaring at Kabuto. She stood up, her stance displaying that she wouldn't give in so easily. "I will not die before Naruto becomes Hokage and Sasuke revives his clan—no matter what!"

"Don't give me that!" The man prepared to strike the girl. "That's nothing but a lot of-"

"**CHIDORI**!"

Sasuke had miraculously overcome his paralysis. He's attack went right through Kabuto's arm! The Sound ninja both shock and in pain let out a horrifying shout. He gripped what was left of his severed arm, drenching his hand in blood. The boy had ripped right through his elbow! Kabuto hastily jumped away, groaning at the horrendous ache. "Sasuke…!" Mayu held her arms out and caught her teammate. "That was incredibly _stupid_!" The shinobi panted, ignoring her shout.

"You think you can just give your life up without permission? I _own_ you both… You or Naruto can't die until _I_ say!" He then promptly fainted. Mayu deadpanned after his words sank in.

"You narcissistic bastard." She gently laid her teammate's limp body down on the ground, only to wince at her own aches. Damn that four-eyed freak, she thought. The kunoichi turned to Tsunade. She stared straight ahead, yet her eyes were not focused. "Hey, you…! Tsunade-sama!" Slowly, the woman's eyes became to focus. "Heal my teammate right now!"

"… But… bl-blood…"

"Blood…? So what? You're a medical ninja—act like it!" Mayu shouted. "Heal Sasuke and Naruto or I will never forgive you!"

"It's no use…" Kabuto panted. "She's so afraid that she's frozen in terror."

"I've had just about enough from you, you one-armed sissy!"

"Even with one arm, I'm still way out of your league!" Kabuto ran toward her, kunai in hand. Mayu tried to move, but ended up grimacing. She couldn't move the way she was now. "This is the end for you!"

"Don't count me out just yet!" A shout rang out through the clearing. "**Shadow Clone Jutsu**!" One clone held back Kabuto's attack by grabbing the man's wrist. The other clone stood beside the real Naruto. The two were in front of his teammates and Tsunade, protecting them from harm.

"Naruto…!" Tsunade was utterly astonished.

"Get ready to own up to your promise!" Naruto held his palm out. The clone's hands swiftly moved about his hand, gathering the chakra. "Let's see you dodge this, asshole!" He thrust his blue sphere at Kabuto's torso. The man howled. "**RASENGAN**!" The ball of chakra and wind pushed Kabuto back, creating a large furrow in the ground. His body smashed against a boulder, ultimately stopping him.

Naruto panted heavily. Finally… Finally, he had achieved that jutsu. His blue eyes watched as Kabuto's body collapsed. The blond genin turned. He walked towards the three. Sasuke was still unconscious. Mayu looked near tears. And Tsunade, to his satisfaction, was staring at him in disbelief. "That's right… old woman…" he muttered. A small grin slowly appeared on his face. "I mastered the Rasengan… in just one week…" He kneeled down next to her. His hand came up and clenched the crystal hanging around her neck. "This belongs to… me now."

Tears welled up in Tsunade's eyes. They spilled over, and one by one dripped from her chin. Smiling a bit, she pulled the necklace from around her neck. Carefully, she slipped it around Naruto's. "Once more…" she whispered. The woman stood up and moved over to Sasuke and Mayu. She crouched down, placing one have over Sasuke's chest, and one had over Mayu's hurting side. Green chakra emitted from her hands. After a few minutes of this, the woman took her hands away. The Uchiha's body flinched before sitting up. He opened his eyes to be greeted by the excited smiles of his teammates. "Just once more…" The three genin turned their hands to Tsunade. Her smile had grown. "I want to place my hopes in you… and your team." One last tear fell before she wiped them away. Her face turned serious. "You three—I want you to leave now."

"What? But you just healed us! We can-"

"No, you've done your part. Go back into town." Sasuke suddenly gasped, causing the other three to become alert. That's when she felt it. _"Killer intent…?"_ The Sanin turned to see Orochimaru heading straight for them. Her eyes sharply turned to Naruto. _"He's after him?!"_ Quickly, her body moved. It was an unconscious movement that caused Orochimaru's sword to go through her chest.

"Tsunade-sama…!"

"Old woman…!"

"Granny…!"

Tsunade coughed out loudly. Orochimaru stared up in shock before removing himself from his former teammate's bosom. The sword and tongue returned to his mouth. He stepped away from the slug Sanin. Out of everyone, she was the only one he had not intended to kill. "That boy will cause problems in more ways than one. Do not get in my way to kill him." Tsunade shuddered, trying to catch a breath.

"That boy… That boy and his team—I will protect at all costs! From here on… I, too, will risk my life for the sake of the village!"

"What the hell happened…? I could have sworn we still didn't like her all that much…" Sasuke whispered.

"Yeah, a lot of things happened while you fainted," Mayu supplied.

"You three—I said to get out of here! Go!" Tsunade's pain-stricken voice startled the three so much that they got to their feet. "Hurry! Leave now!" The team left without another word. The Sanin's body shivered, keeping her amber eyes on them until she could no longer see their backs.

"Why do you go to such lengths to protect mere leaves, Tsunade? Eventually, I will get what I want."

"That's because I'm… the Hidden Leaf Village's Fifth Hokage!"

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Finished September 6, 2009

You don't know how glad I am that this is over. Yes, I said it—the Tsunade arc is _over_! It was… annoying that I didn't want Sasuke, Naruto, or Mayu fighting Orochimaru. Even in his weakened state, he's still a Sanin, and I was definitely not going to mess wit that, so it was tough writing this. That's why someone else too most—if not all—of the beating.

**Kabuto**: Yeah, he lost an arm in case you didn't read that right. Why did I make him lose his arm? Well, because he was a bit of douche the episodes, so—nah, I'm just kidding. The real reason I made him a one-armed guy will be explained in the future… hopefully. But there is a serious why! Trust me! Anyway, concerning the fight between him and Team 7—I must admit was a bit of fun. Though, it may appear that Kabuto was weaker than he was, that was not my intention. My philosophy is that if people work together, no matter who the single person is, they have the advantage. It just depends on how much that single enemy can endure. If it was Orochimaru in Kabuto's place, what happened, wouldn't have happened. That snake can endure a lot of crap, so I feel confident that tricks and surprises would work on him—but those things wouldn't do much to him—damage-wise. Got it? No? Oh, well… Sucks to be you.

**Tsunade and Jiraiya VS Orochimaru**: -scoffs- Like I was going to _touch_ that! Hope _your_ hopes weren't up.

**Sakura**: I was going to give a preview of what I'm planning to do with her, but _nah_! I'm going to let you all _try_ to figure it out during the next couple of chapters. But let me tell you, I've changed what I originally planned for her, so it may not be what you think. Stay tuned!

Next time: _Trying to Find My Place_

I'm looking forward to your reviews.


	22. Trying to Find My Place

The genin of Team 7, in anticipation, watched as their sensei was supposedly healed by the busty woman, known as Tsunade. Soon after returning to the village, the group of four headed straight to the hospital. Jiraiya had gone to the Third Hokage to let him know that they had returned after a successful mission. Now the genin, plus Tsunade were in a hospital room, waiting for Hatake Kakashi to come to. The slug Sanin removed her hand from his forehead. After a few moments of waiting, Sasuke finally got fed up.

_SMACK_

"Would you wake up already?! Trust you to be late even in regaining consciousness!" Sasuke crossed his arms as a comical bump swelled on Kakashi's head. The jounin slowly moved in an upright position. "About time…"

"It is disappointing. I thought you were this big-shot ninja," Tsunade commented. Surprise showed in the Copy ninja's eye as he stared at the Sanin. It was… truly an honor to meet her, but that comment made him resist the urge to retort. His gaze traveled around the room, stopping on each of his subordinates for a time. Sasuke looked annoyed, Naruto—at least—looked glad he was okay, and Mayu was frowning. "Even with this healing, you still need to rest for awhile."

"How long are we talking?" Mayu focused on her eyes on Tsunade. The woman looked up in thought, and then gave her answer.

"Just a few days… give or take a week."

"WHAT?!" Both Naruto and Mayu shouted in annoyance. The young kunoichi shot her sensei an accusing stare as if it was his fault the team was in this predicament.

"His brain has suffered a lot of damage because of Uchiha Itachi. I'd be surprised if he could respond, let alone walk." Tsunade turned, seeing Gai anxiously waiting near the door. "I'll leave you to discuss the future with your team, Hatake." With that being said, Tsunade left the room along with Gai. Kakashi was not the only one she was assigned to heal. Afterwards, she had to speak with her former sensei, Sarutobi Hiruzen, concerning her new position in the Leaf village.

The eyes of the genin returned to Kakashi after the other two adult's departing footsteps could no longer be heard. "Sorry about this, you three. It looks like I won't be training you for awhile. You will have to train amongst yourselves."

"What about missions?" Naruto asked.

"The same goes for missions."

Both Mayu and Naruto groaned.

--

Hence the team's current predicament. Naruto shouted out loud as if he was in pain. Both Sasuke and Mayu ignored their impulsive teammate. He had been doing it for awhile now. However, it wasn't without reason. Even though the team was much more experienced than before, they had still received D-rank missions because of their hospital-bound sensei. They had been stuck doing chores for two hours now, and already they were getting tired of it. Sasuke and Mayu were just a little more quiet about their aggravation. "I can't take it anymore!" Naruto suddenly threw the bag of bird food down. The small seeds spilled over. "I can't stand doing these chores! At our level, it's an insult—making us do this!"

"Calm down, Naruto. This is our last mission for today." Mayu's eyes narrowed into a glare as she took her hand from the bird cage. Stupid carrier bird had bitten her finger. "I know how you feel. If it's any comfort, we can start training after this."

"Yeah, I know, but… What about tomorrow—or the next day? I don't want to be doing these so-called missions for the rest of my life!"

"Deal with it, idiot." Sasuke's brow twitched as he, once again, removed a bird from his head. The birds, for some reason, thought his hair was a nest and had continued to perch on top. Irritated, he locked the cage and turned to his teammates.

All of them were annoyed, smelly, and dirty. All were in need up a bath and perhaps a little fight. After leaving the hospital, the team of three was immediately sent off to do tedious missions. The Hokage said something along the lines of 'making up for what you missed,' with a grin. The old coot had actually _grinned_ as he assigned the missions that had to be completed today. Surprisingly, he was the source of their annoyance. There was no rest for the group who had just returned to the village—no, sir. Because of this, Mayu believe that every person in the village had a little bit of a sadist in them.

The kunoichi pushed the spilled seeds back in the bag, and then tied it up. She stood up straight and wiped her hands off. "We're finished here. You guys can go and get cleaned up. I'll give the report. Let's meet in two hours at Sasuke's place, and from there, we'll go to the location of where we'll train."

"Why my place?!" Naruto and Mayu stared at their teammate as if he were an idiot. "_Argh_, fine…! But this is the last time! No more sleepovers after this!"

"_Pfft_…! That's what you said _last_ time!" Naruto laughed, and then tapped Sasuke's shoulder on his way to the exit of the bird coop. Sasuke followed after him, grumbling to himself. He halted his movements before exiting. He turned to his confused-looking teammate.

"I'll give the report, alright? You can go home—it's about that time." Because Mayu stilled looked perplexed, Sasuke continued. "I mean… the place where you used to live. Go there—you might learn something." With that being said, the young Uchiha made his exit.

Mayu rolled her eyes, but then frowned. How did he find out she hadn't been 'home' yet? Blue eyes stared down at the floor. He was correct, though. She had been putting off going to that place since she remembered. Sasuke was right. If not now, then when. It could not be put off any longer. Giving a nod of determination, the kunoichi left the room. Her intention was to go back home… right after a well-deserved shower.

--

Mayu's fingers lightly brush against the column of the large, red shrine gate. Her eyes, however, were on the building structure beyond the gate. The entrance to the Ishikari complex stared back at her. A place that she had once called home now seemed eerie and dark. The kunoichi flinched when a cold wind suddenly blew by. It seemed to be pulling her in. "Creepy…" she murmured as she slowly moved forward. She pulled the door open, noting the Ishikari crest. The crest symbolized the clan's deep relationship to the cat family. The intertwining of the three felines symbolized the clan's ability. She had been taught these things since the day she first learned how to speak.

The young ninja trekked further into the house, seeing the amount of dust her old home had collected. It had been nearly four years. Four long years since Mayu had laid eyes on this place. "Are you disappointed, father, and mother?" She frowned as she walked. It was odd that the place looked as it did when she left. But then again, considering their lives were a secret, no one would come to knock it down and sell the furniture. Mayu continued to walk forward until she came to her old room. She slid the door open slowly. Her eyelids lowered as she stared into the room. "Itachi…" she whispered. The older Uchiha had sometimes slept in the same room with her whenever he spent the night. They had slept side by side like siblings. She had loved him as a sibling. But then he had to go and do something so tragic, leaving their relationship severed.

Slowly, the kunoichi closed the door, not bothering to go into her room. It might have been too painful. She wished that she was still able to call that man her friend, but after what he did… Itachi made it so that they could never go back to the way they were. Mayu blinked back a couple of tears before they fell and continued on with her visitation.

It was a bit of surprise that there was no longer any blood on the walls or floor. The Hokage must've been responsible for that. Mayu could barely remember that night—on account that her mother was dragging her along quickly—but she was sure there had been a lot of red. The young kunoichi stopped. This was it. This was the room where her mother had preformed the forbidden jutsu that sent her away. The girl's arm fell limply at her side. The door had been removed. It looked as if the room had been inspected. There was tape on the floor—the spot where she had disappeared. Of course they had investigated. A forbidden jutsu was used. There was no doubt that a large amount of chakra residue was left behind.

Coincidently, this was the same room in which her grandmother had fallen asleep, yet had never wakened. She had died years before she had gotten a chance to really know Uchiha Itachi like she had done. Ishikari Mayuka and Ishikari Mayuri had died in this room. "Will I have the same fate as you, mother and grandmother?" Mayu thought, turning her eyes away from the room. She turned her body away, wanting to go somewhere else.

Mayu decided to head toward her parents' room. She remembered she had often hid in her parents' room whenever she had pulled some ludicrous prank on Itachi. The kunoichi slide the door back. She was greeted by an empty room. Usually, her mother and father only used the room for sleeping… as far as she was concerned. Mayu made a face at the thought of her parents doing anything other than sleeping. Generally, her father worked in town and sparred with her mother. Her mother, if she was not sparring with her father, was speaking with the Hokage—or whoever. Really, Mayu had no idea who else knew of the clan besides the Hokage.

The Ishikari headed to the closet. If she remembered correctly, there were clothes in there for her. Her mother had given the clothes to her as a ninth birthday present. She had stated that she would be able to fit them when she was older. Mayu opened the closet and inspected the said clothes. There had been covered with plastic. The kunoichi narrowed her eyes. These weren't the clothes she had received. "Oh," she murmured. The present was in _her_ closet, not her parents' closet. Just as she was about to turn something caught her eye. Lifting a brow, Mayu shifted her eyes down. There seemed to be a line in the floor in the closet. Kneeling, her blue eyes examined the thin opening.

_When the time is right, search my room, Mayu._

_How will I know when the time is right, mother?_

_When I am no longer of this world. You will know the secrets of the Ishikari clan._

_There's a secret besides the secret of being hidden?_ _God, our clan is puzzling even to the clan members._

_-chuckle- Yes, there is. After learning this secret, you will take your place as the next generation's Ishikari Master._

Remembering that certain conversation between herself and her mother made her bite her lip. She supposed now was that time. Her fingers slipped between the thin crack. Slowly and cautiously, she lifted. To her surprise, it had been a hidden 'door.' She raised the floorboard higher. What she saw were stairs leading down. The stairs seemed to be shaped like a spiral. A gush of air caused Mayu to shiver. She could not see what the stairs were leading to. It was much too dark. If she ventured down, she would need fire to light her way. The kunoichi sighed. There was no telling how long it would take. She would be late getting to Sasuke's place. She could already hear his irritated voice if she were to show up late. "Later… Definitely later." The Ishikari nodded her head as if she was determined.

She let the 'door' fall, and then stood. She would probably come back after training. If not, then the next day—early morning if she was able. The kunoichi turned and left her parents' room, wondering what secrets could be hidden down in that secret basement.

Once outside, she stared back at her old home for a moment. She doubted that she would be able to live here when she was older. The memories would be too much. Instead, she would probably keep it there. Perhaps as a monument of sorts…? Mayu smiled a bit before continuing. _"Yeah, a tribute to the Ishikari clan,"_ she thought as she hurried down the stone steps.

--

"Are you insane?!"

The young ninja of Team 7 were standing outside the gates of 44th Battle Training Zone. Hence the apprehensive and shouting coming from the blond of the team. Each one of them had been here before, and not one of them had a pleasant experience. Naruto stared at the one responsible for choosing such a place to train. She had to be joking, right? Really, this was just for a laugh. "Keep your voice down, Naruto." Mayu kept her eyes on whatever lied beyond the gate. "Do want to get us caught?"

"Yes—because this is insane!"

Mayu sighed. "It's a good place to train, Naruto. We all got stronger here, so why not come here again? Don't you want to get stronger fast?" The blond pursed his lips together, knowing she already knew the answer to that question. "That's what I thought. Besides, Sasuke is in full agreement with me." The Uchiha nodded.

"It's dangerous in there. We need that experience. It could save our lives on a later mission," he stated.

"Fine…"

The team jumped over the gate. "Do we at least have a destination?" Naruto asked, looking around. This was a different entrance, after all. He had to keep his eyes peeled. Giant snakes were not on his agenda today. "Are we heading for the tower?"

"I don't think that's a good idea. We're not supposed to be here without permission since we're genin. The tower in the middle has cameras." Mayu nodded her head in agreement with Sasuke's words.

"Instead, I was thinking of heading to that tiger's den. That's a good start."

"Again with the tigers?"

"Yes, Naruto," Mayu frowned. "I know that I told you before that I have a connection with the cat family. To be perfectly honest, this isn't the last time we will encounter felines."

"But they might not be as generous as they were last time!"

"The idiot does have a point," Sasuke said.

"No need to worry. Those tigers know me through my uncle's partner. That's why they did not attack us the first time."

"Your uncle's partner…?"

"Yeah, like I have Nana-chan as a partner. My uncle's partner happens to be a tiger," Mayu explained. She stepped forward. "Anyway, let's go." Her two teammates glanced at each other before following after her.

--

The team, unfortunately, had no idea they were being watch from inside the forest. A dark chuckle, muffled by a full face mask, caused the other to turn. "Well, aren't we in for a little treat?" The masked man shifted his weight on the branch as his unseen eyes continued to stare at the three genin. "It's been awhile since I've killed someone. I think I'll enjoy this, won't you, Shizuma?" The other man nodded, and then smirked. His blood lust spiked as he licked his lips—a trait he picked up from his former leader. "It's no fun to kill if the opponent doesn't fight back. I'm sick of defenseless animals. I want the real thing."

The two ninja leapt up.

--

"I know I'm the one who came up with this idea, but I'm starting to get freaked out a bit," Mayu muttered, narrowing her eyes. "It darker in the forest even though it's the middle of the day."

"Don't get cold feet now. We're seeing this thing through the end!" Naruto shouted. The kunoichi pouted.

"That's not what I'm saying… It's just creepier than last time. What do you think Sasuke?" The Uchiha did not respond. Actually, he had been silent this whole time. "Sasuke…? What's the matter?" Still, he had not replied. Mayu let out an uneasy chuckle. "It's weird that you haven't started arguing with one of us yet."

"Listen up, you two." Finally, the Uchiha boy said something. Yet his voice was stern. This caused his teammates to focus on him. "We're being followed." His words caused the two of them to stiffen. "I noticed it an hour after we entered the forest. Whoever it is has been tailing us this whole time, I think."

Naruto gritted his teeth. He, Sasuke and Mayu pressed their backs against one another, so they had eyes on all sides. The blond strained his ears to hear anything suspicious. However, the forest was eerily quiet. His eyes looked up. He could not see anything except the tree branches. His teammates weren't saying anything either, so he assumed that they weren't seeing anything. "Guys… what should we do?"

"I don't think whoever is following us is on our side." Mayu narrowed her eyes, frowning.

"We're going to have to fight, I'm assuming." Sasuke looked around once more. "Come out!" he shouted. "We know you've been following us! Show yourself!"

"Yeah, you coward!" Naruto also shouted.

Laughter filled the team's ears, causing them to flinch. It did not sound like just one person. Unconsciously, they pressed harder against each other. The laughter did not sound very jolly. In fact, it sounded downright malicious. "Looks like we've been found out, eh, Shizuma? How clever these brats are." More laughter. So it was more than one enemy? "We don't get many tourists, do we? Let's give them a tour, shall we?"

"Yes, the tour leading to Hell because we'll kill them with our own two diabolical hands, which are composed of many sinister fingers, which we will use to fiendishly destroy them one by one until they are dead! D-E-A-D—DEAD! Hahahaahaa!"

"Okay, okay, they get it—we're fucking evil!" The voice scoffed. "No wonder I don't let you talk much."

Two men dropped down on the forest floor, causing the genin to shift their attention. The two leered at the three, intimidating them. "Sasuke," Mayu whispered. "How far away are we from that den?"

"… It's still a ways off. The entrance we went in just happened to be the furthest away from our destination."

"I recognize these two. They participated in the chuunin exam. They were on the team Orochimaru infiltrated. He disguised himself as their leader." Everyone froze, hearing that name, even the two ninja. The masked one stepped forward, causing the team of three to step back.

"You're wrong, little girl. We killed all of the members of that team. We are also in disguise. Orochimaru left us in the forest to kill any obstacles that would stop Uchiha Sasuke's team from reaching the tower. However, Orochimaru went and lost the war, leaving us stranded here, hiding out. We couldn't leave this horrible forest at all thanks to that man."

"Fortunately for us, we've found some entertainment!"

"What do you mean entertainment?" Naruto asked.

"Just what I said, kid. We haven't had bratty genin to kill since the second part of the chuunin exam. This is our chance." The ninja wearing the straw hat suddenly flung several kunai at the three.

Quickly, Sasuke pushed his two teammates away from him. He then focused on the oncoming weapons—Sharingan activated. In his eyes, the projectiles were moving slowly. One by one, Sasuke caught the kunai and launched them back at the two enemies. The two separated. The kunai embedded into the tree. The mask less ninja jumped up, removing his cloak. What he revealed was some kind machine attached to his arm by wires. No, it _was_ his arm attached to his bicep. "A gun…?!" Mayu shouted. The circular end of the unusual weapon glowed bright blue. It seemed to be aiming for Sasuke. "Watch out, Sasuke!" The weapon seemed to shoot something forward because whatever it was pushed the enemy back and slammed into the unsuspecting Uchiha.

"Sasuke…!" Naruto shouted as his teammate crashed into a tree. The blond whirled around toward the enemy. "What the hell was that?!"

The man rubbed his weapon fondly. "This absorbs my chakra and forces it out at incredible speeds. This attack is invisible. I doubt anyone could see it. That bastard, Orochimaru, lopped off my arm, but he gave this to me as a present. I actually like this arm much more than my old one!" The man, Shizuma, aimed his weapon at Naruto. "It packs quite the punch!" It glowed bright before it fired.

"Naruto!" The blond was tackled to the forest floor. The tree behind him shattered into pieces. Both Naruto and Sasuke turned and looked behind them. "This is bad if you two can't see it. Mayu, use your-"

"A little busy!"

The kunoichi was busy dodging the rapid attacks from the masked ninja. He was using his hands as claws, swiping away at the girl. She did a back flip and jumped up into a tree. However, this did nothing to quell the masked ninja's assault. Mayu jumped back, narrowly dodging the man's hand. His fingers sliced right through the branch! The kunoichi fell to the ground. She looked up, seeing that the man was still after. Mayu groaned heavily before she rolled over several times. The masked ninja's hand made an impact with the ground where Mayu had been before. Dirt suspended in air. After it cleared, slash marks were visible in the ground.

The kunoichi joined up with her teammates again, panting. The two shinobi, having had their own problem, were also panting. "They're so fast!" Naruto glared at the two. "It's time to bust out our jutsu!" He formed a hand sign. "**Shadow Clone Jutsu**!" Several clones appeared in front of the team, hopefully obscuring the enemies' vision of them. "I want the guy with that weapon. You guys can handle the other one, can't you?"

"Don't make me laugh," Sasuke responded. "You can't even see his attacks. I'll take care of him."

"No, I will!"

"No, me!"

"You idiots! Both of you fight him! I'll fight the masked one! _Jeez_!"

Mayu frowned as she pushed herself from the ground and landed on a branch. Her teammates shrugged before making their move. Quickly, the kunoichi bit her thumb, formed the proper hand signs, and then slammed her palm against the bark of the tree branch. "**Ninja Art: Summoning Jutsu**!" Not wasting a second, Mayu grabbed her bow and arrows from her feline partner and ordered her to go and hide before the smoke cleared. Nana did so without hesitation. It was the same tactic she used against Sasuke, but it should still have the same effect. Mayu readied her arrow, preparing to fire as soon as the smoke fully cleared. Too bad her opponent did not wait for that. His body launched at her through the cloud, causing the kunoichi to yelp in surprise. In order not to be hit, she fell back, firing her arrow. Her enemy twisted his body in order not to be hit. He laughed. Though it was muffled, it was still quite intimidating. Mayu glared hard as she landed.

"Stupid girl, your long-ranged attacks won't work on me—not in this dense forest. It was a waste of time summoning a useless weapon. Why don't you come closer?"

It appeared that she had no choice in the matter. Mayu shifted her weight, and then shot forward, running on the ground. She could sense that her enemy was a bit confused she ran right pass him. She turned at looked up to where he was watching her go. "You want a close fight, then come and get it!" The masked man laughed out again before giving chase. _"Good, now I won't have to be worried about Naruto and Sasuke getting attacked by him." _The kunoichi returned her focus ahead of her. Judging from the man's earlier attacks, she could say that he was a 'in your face' fighter, but then again, he had only shown one attack. There was no telling what else this ninja was capable of. After all, he worked for Orochimaru.

Mayu dug into her weapon's pouch, pulling out a kunai and an explosive note. She stuck the note on the hilt of the kunai, and then stopped. She shot the weapon up at a branch that she predicted the enemy would swing from. The kunoichi stopped and waited. As she foresaw, the enemy made contact with the branch. He must have heard the sizzling of the note because his eyes shifted away from her. Seconds later, the note exploded, sending the enemy hurtling toward the ground. Not wasting a moment, Mayu launched another arrow.

The masked man must have seen this coming. He brought his hand up in a slicing motion, cutting the arrow in half. "I told you before… these arrows won't work on me." The kunoichi frowned, and then dashed toward him. Her best bet was to bring the fight to a close combat. "Haha," he chuckled, dodging a fist. "You're too slow to compete with me. Anything you throw, I'll just dodge it! You will lose!" His hand struck out, forcing Mayu to distance herself. She gritted her teeth, feeling blood sully her clothes. His crazy long nails had gotten her. She held her arm. But it shouldn't have. She made sure that she would evade his strikes from those hands of his. Her eyes widen. Of course…! His nails weren't that long, but his fingers were freakishly long. She assumed that he was using chakra with his nails to cut deep—that part was correct. However, she had misjudged the length of his fingers.

Mayu narrowed her eyes. She would have to rethink her strategy. However, the masked man did not give her the chance. He charged at her, intending to kill with his swipe. The kunoichi ducked and kicked her leg out. The man merely hopped up and twisted mid air. He delivered a roundhouse kick to Mayu's face. The girl's back slid on the ground, only coming to a stop because of a tree. _"Shit…"_ she thought, slowly standing. She ran at the man again. Anko's training was hell, but she hoped it still worked for her own body. Pulling out two kunai, Mayu suddenly shifted her feet. The kunoichi disappeared from the man's eyes!

He let out a startled gasp, seeing a shadow loom over behind him. The man turned, bring up his arms. Unfortunately, it was a bad move. The girl's weapons sliced through his appendages like hot blades through butter. Crying out, the masked man stumbled away from Mayu. She slowly moved her arms to her sides. The kunai in her hands hummed as if they had lives of their own. The girl's hands stopped shaking, causing her weapons to stop shaking as well. It was a technique that Anko had taught her while she inhabited the body of Haruno Sakura. Her footwork was the focus of the technique. It caused her body to move at extreme speeds for a second. In that second, the user can get behind their enemy—as she had done.

The man growled, and then moved forward, disregarding the fact that he had lost his arms. Blood poured out as he ran at the kunoichi. Mayu gave a startled look at his fortitude. Quickly, she threw the kunai at the man. He caused the kunai with his wooden mask, never stopping his dash. He pushed his feet on the ground, curled and flipped his body, and then kicked his legs out. The kick forced Mayu to hit a tree branch. "I have to thank you… I was getting tired of those arms." Blue eyes widen in horror as the man literally grew another set of arms. His new set of arms was horribly disfigured. Instead of arms, they were more like tentacles. The bloody, yellow limbs wiggled, causing the kunoichi to grimace. Suddenly, they shot out toward her. Too fast to react, Mayu could only feel one of the tentacles wrap around her neck. Her back slammed against the ground as she felt the other attachment wrap around her right wrist.

She choked out, feeling her throat constrict under the pressure. The laughter of the man echoed in her ears. Using his new attachments, he lifted the girl in the air right before slamming her into a tree. He then smashed her against another tree, and then the ground. This continued several times. Each time brought cries and groans from the kunoichi. Tears welled up in Mayu's eyes. The pain was a bit too much. If it continued, she would be in serious trouble. The masked man suspended her in air. He grinned underneath his mouth, knowing that he had one. "What did I tell you?" An appendage released her wrist. Mayu's body shook. Saliva ran down her chin as she continued to gasp for air. "You are no match for me." For a moment, he stared up at the girl. He narrowed his eyes, smirking. "You were not as entertaining as I thought you'd be." The tip of his tentacle slithered up the kunoichi's shirt. Her blue eyes widen, and then her teeth clenched. "How about you make it interesting for me, _hm_? You'll live for a few minutes more."

Mayu glared down at the man, infuriated. Struggling, the girl placed her hands on the appendage around her neck. Chakra enveloped her hands. However, the man did not take notice of this. Although, she still used great effort to breathe, the kunoichi grinned. "Sorry," she murmured. "This isn't… that type of… story… Tsu… **Tsukeru**!" Blue flames emitted from her hands. They burned the man, causing him to hiss in pain. Mayu's fingers dug into the flesh of her enemy. He screamed as her fingers—with the help of the intense blue fire—torn through his skin tissue. The part around Mayu's neck and the part attached to the man had been severed. The kunoichi dropped down to the ground, coughing and sputtering. She quickly removed the burning attachment from her neck, tossing it to the side. Mayu held her neck, trying to breathe normally. However, it felt as it her esophagus was crushed. She found it hard to regain her composure.

"YOU BITCH!" The man's shout drew Mayu's attention. She looked up, surprised that Tsukeru didn't take care of him completely like it had his arm. Damn—this meant she was nowhere near how she was when she was in Sakura's body. She gritted her teeth as her enemy ran at her. Before he could reach her, however, a dark blur suddenly knocked him over. "What the hell…?!" A roar filled the kunoichi's ears as she stood. Nice one, she thought. Nana had come out of hiding—coming to her aide at the last second. The black leopard bit down on her enemy's shoulder. This caused him to scream out.

Mayu, not wasting time, pulled an arrow from her quiver. Luckily, one of the arrows hadn't been broken because of her forceful meeting with the ground and trees. She'd have to thank her mother for telling her to put Styrofoam in the bottom of her quiver, otherwise, who knows how many arrows she would have lost. The kunoichi readied her arrow and bow. She stood over the man with a frown on her face. Nana had him pinned down. She may have not been very big, but her jaws were powerful enough to paralyze because of pain alone. Mayu pulled the string back as far as it would go. The man's eyes were wide. She could tell that even from behind the mask. "Dodge this." Mayu released her arrow, sending it straight into her enemy's heart.

It would have gone into his heart. However, the masked man overcame his pain and jumped up from the ground. He tore Nana away from his shoulder. The kunoichi snarled when he threw the feline. Swiftly, Mayu pulled out another kunai and ran after the man. Since he was taller than her, she hopped on his back. He tried to pry her off with his attachment, but Mayu kept her firm grip. Her forearm forced his head back, exposing his neck. Without another thought, the kunoichi slit open his throat, spraying blood on the forest floor. The masked man gagged on his own blood. He dropped to his knees, and then fell over—dead.

Panting heavily, Mayu finally released the dead body. It still hurt to breathe, though. Slowly, the girl stood up. Her blue eyes watched blood pool around the corpse. She swallowed hard before looking around. Nana limped over to her. Still panting, the kunoichi fell to her knees. She patted the black leopard on the head, and then signaled that she could go. The feline nodded, and then disappeared in a cloud of smoke, along with the bow.

Shaking her head, the kunoichi stood up. This was no time to be resting. Her teammates might need her. "Naru… to… Sasu… ke…" A hand clutched her throat. Her voice was hoarse. Damn that freaky ninja. Hopefully, this complication was only temporary. _"I'm coming, you guys." _

--

Naruto watched his female teammate take off running, leaving them behind. No sooner had she disappeared from his sight, her opponent took off after her. "I guess it's you two against me, _eh_?" The weird man brought his attention back. His hand curled into a fist. "Well, you two and some clones, but what's the difference, really?" He pointed his metal arm at the two. "I believe you should know the name of your executioner. It's only fair. My name is Shizuma. Remember that in the afterlife." Once again, his strange weapon showed the blue glow before sending out chakra.

The blond felt hands push him aside. "**Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu**!" A ball of fire launched from Sasuke's mouth. Yes, Naruto thought. Sasuke's jutsu would surely take care of the ninja. That's what he believe until he heard the sound of laughter coming from their enemy. The fireball collided with the chakra, causing a massive explosion to occur. This blast sent both young shinobi crashing into the tree. Naruto coughed out, grabbing his abdomen. Actually, Sasuke had slammed into him. He nearly knocked the wind out of him. "What the hell…?" The Uchiha groaned as he stood.

"I wouldn't recommend trying that again," Shizuma chuckled. His voice made the two shinobi look up. He was in the safety of a tree. He grinned. "Though you can try your hardest—makes it more fun for me. In the end, both of you will still die."

"Not on your life, pal!" Naruto shouted. That's when he realized that his clones had been caught in the blast. _"Shit…"_ He would need to make more. The blond gritted his teeth in annoyance.

"But we're not pals… right?"

Sasuke and Naruto exchanged a look.

"We're dealing with an idiot…" they thought. "Get serious!" Naruto's hands came together in a hand sign. Once again, he performed the Shadow Clone Jutsu, summoning more clones. The five copies of Naruto pulled out one kunai each. They then dashed toward the enemy. "Can't hit them all!"

The smirk returned to Shizuma's face. He quickly pushed one of the three buttons on his mechanical arm. His eyes focused back on the oncoming clones. Once again, his weapon glowed brightly before firing off. This time, however, it seemed that multiple shots were fired because every single clone popped out of existence. "Damn it! What kinda weapon is that?!" Naruto curled his fingers into fists.

"Doesn't matter," Sasuke murmured. "Numbers won't work on this guy!" He narrowed his eyes. "Distract him for me, Naruto." His blond teammate nodded his head. He then created ten more clones. Obviously, this guy was a long-ranged fighter. Hopefully, that meant he was weak in close-ranged combat. Sasuke's dark eyes watched as clone after clone was destroyed. None had made contact with the enemy. It would be so much easier if Naruto could see the chakra. "Naruto, retreat!"

The Uchiha jumped away and behind a tree, hoping his blond teammate would do the same. Seconds later, Naruto was near him, hiding behind a bush. He could hear laughter. They were being mocked for hiding. Sasuke clenched his teeth, clearly irritated. But it couldn't be helped. He needed time to think of some kind of plan for getting pass his arm. "Sasuke, what should we do?" Naruto's question went unanswered. Instead, the young shinobi fished out a shuriken from his pouch. Swiftly, he threw it at Shizuma. The man turned, laughing loudly. His weapon completely obliterated the projectile. Frowning, Sasuke shifted back. Had their position been compromised? As if reading his mind, Shizuma turned his head in their direction. He pushed another button. Sasuke's eyes grew wide. "Move, Naruto!"

According to his eyes, the weapon had shot forth a massive amount of chakra. The two male ninja jumped out of the way just in time. The collision literally vanquished everything in the area that had just come from. Sasuke stood, huffing. They were back where they started. Glaring, he rushed forward. Shizuma poised his weapon to fire again. Once Sasuke saw the chakra launch out, he purposely picked up speed. The attack was inches away from his face when he suddenly bent his upper body backwards. Sasuke had narrowly escaped damage by doing so. Because of his speed, the Uchiha had not stopped. He continued forward, sliding on his foot. "Huh?" The enemy could only expand his eyes in surprise before the sole of Sasuke foot smashed against his chin. His head sprang back because of the impact. The attack lifted his body off the ground.

Naruto saw his chance to make his own move. Once more, he summoned clones as he moved ahead. The two clones beside the blond actually tripped him, causing Naruto to fall forward. However, when he was in midair, the clones pushed his feet, sending the original launching through the air like a bullet. Naruto's head went ramming into the enemy's face. This successfully broke Shizuma's nose. He groaned at the pain as he fell back. "Nice one, Naruto!" Sasuke hurriedly stood. What the two did not count on was Shizuma swinging his legs, tripping them. Both genin fell over, surprised that he was still able to move quickly after that nose injury. He should have been momentarily paralyzed by the pain.

Quickly, the two rolled away in order not be hit by a foot or the bizarre weapon. Using their arms, the two shinobi flipped away from Shizuma. "I admit that hurt, but that was nothing compared to the pain of getting this baby attached." He laughed again, unaware that Sasuke and Naruto were getting sick of his laughs. Shizuma pointed his weapon again. "Nice try, though." Unpredictably, Naruto grinned. The blond then held out his right hand. Sasuke nodded his head, and then began to move his hands around the space above Naruto's outstretched hand. Shizuma raised a curious eyebrow. He could clearly see chakra being formed in the boy's palm. Unexpectedly, Sasuke disappeared with a familiar popping noise. "What…?!" Before he could react, though, he felt arms grab him from behind. Surprisingly, the arms were strong and kept his own arms apart.

"Do it, Naruto!" The Uchiha had gotten behind him!

"**RASENGAN**!"

The blue orb of chakra jammed into his flesh just as he felt himself being released. He could actually feel the intense feeling of his skin being disintegrated. He yelled out, feeling his back hit the bark of the tree. He had been sent soaring through the air. He was yards above the ground. Blood spilled out of his mouth and trickled down his chin. His life—he could actually feel it fading. The man did not even realize that he crashed against the ground. He had landed on his stomach, sending searing pain to his mind. This was much worse than anything Orochimaru had dished out. Groaning, he felt himself being turned over. Through blurry eyes, he realized that it was the dark-haired one who had done it. _"What… type of jutsu… was… that…?" _His mind was beginning to fade as well.

"Who's laughing now, freak?" Sasuke asked, staring down at him. Slowly, a grin spread on Shizuma's face.

"I'll… al-always… have the… la-last… laugh." His hand moved, causing the two genin to narrow their eyes. With his dying breath, he chortled and pushed the last button on his contraption that was supposed to be an arm. "See you brats in hell!" Both young shinobi tensed.

A loud explosion was heard all throughout Konoha.

--

Tsunade stared at the three genin in front of her with a disbelieving stare. Two of them were giving her sheepish grins. The last one remained impassive, but under her scrutiny, he was beginning to crack as well. At the moment, the four were in a hospital room. The genin were all fairly injured. The kunoichi had multiple bruises on her body—mostly on her neck. She hadn't been able to speak on the count that it pained her to. The two shinobi also had bruises, yet theirs were scarce. However, they were bleeding. Blood, dirt, and most likely sweat soaked all of their bodies. She sighed heavily. "Let me get this straight…" The Sanin raised a delicate eyebrow—an indication that she did not believe them in the first place. "You three were _sparring_ and that's how you received these injuries?" The three nodded their heads. "I've never had to heal someone because of sparring injuries before…" The three exchanged looks that was not lost to her brown eyes.

"Our training is usually intense." Sasuke was the one to speak up. Tsunade made a disapproving noise.

"Oh…? And you have nothing to do with the explosion earlier—the one that took place in the 44th Battle Zone?"

"Nope, we were passed out when that happened!" Naruto exclaimed in a loud voice. His two teammates were quick to whack him over the head. "Hey…!"

"Look—would you just heal us already? We've got better things to do!" Sasuke crossed his arms.

The slug Sanin gave the team one more suspicious look before shrugging. Green chakra emitted from her hand. She then placed on hand on the kunoichi's neck. "Your esophagus was crushed, Mayu." Tsunade glanced at the two shinobi. "You three need to be careful. Don't forget she's your teammate." Naruto furiously nodded his head. Slowly, the bruises on Mayu's body disappeared. Tsunade turned to the other two and placed her hands on their heads. Once more, green chakra was summoned. In the same manner, their injuries disappeared. "I'm busy, so don't train anymore today."

"Yes, Tsunade-sama."

"Whatever, old woman."

"You got it, granny!"

Tsunade's eye twitched before she made her exit.

The three genin listened to the woman's departing footsteps until they could no longer hear them. In unison, they released a sigh of relief. "That was a close one, ne?" Naruto locked his fingers behind his head. "We wouldn't have had to do that if that guy didn't blow himself up like that." He looked at Sasuke. "Why do you think he did that, anyway?"

"Probably, so he could take that weapon to his grave. That man did a nice job of brainwashing his subordinates…" Sasuke scoffed lightly. He turned to the kunoichi of the team. "You alright—that other one's dead, right?" Mayu hadn't talked much since they left the _Forest of Death_. The girl massaged her throat as she spoke.

"Yeah… Orochimaru made that guy a freak…" Her teammates continued to look in her direction, wanting her to explain. However, she did not. Shrugging, they decided to let the subject drop. "It's almost dark. I think we should head to Sasuke's now. Enough _training_ for today." Naruto eagerly nodded his head. The kunoichi hopped off the hospital bed.

Within a few moments, the team was outside of the hospital. They walked down the street. Naruto was talking animatedly about how cool his new jutsu was. Sasuke looked very much annoyed by this, yet he said nothing. Mayu smiled lightly at her teammates' actions. Same old, same old, she thought. Her blue eyes looked up in thought. "I wonder how everyone is… especially Gaara-kun. We haven't seen any of the other rookies since we got back." The kunoichi mentally sighed as she looked back down to Earth. She was a bit worried about Sakura, too. That girl had lost her mother. If given the chance, she would like to talk to her. Have a chance to apologize, at least. Or explain properly, perhaps. For some strange reason, Sakura had it in her head that it was Mayu's fault that her mother died. How she came up with that idea was beyond her, but Sakura definitely needed to be spoken with.

As if the gods were answering her prayers, Mayu spotted a flash of pink going around a corner. Instantly, the kunoichi perked up. She looked toward her teammates. Naruto and Sasuke were conversing—well, Naruto was talking off Sasuke's ear, but it was the thought that counted. "Hey, guys!" Her teammates turned back, stopping their walk. "I'm going to… uh… pick up something. You can go on without me. I'll catch up later."

"Why don't all of us go together?" Naruto questioned, walking towards her. Sasuke matched his movements.

"It can wait until tomorrow—we're all tired… except Naruto, apparently." The Uchiha narrowed his eyes. The blond blatantly stuck his tongue out.

"No, no… I have to do this now. Besides, I also have to buy some snacks for tonight. Naruto ate up everything in your refrigerator that last time, remember?" Remembering, Sasuke glared at Naruto. The orange-clad ninja chuckled nervously.

"Why you bringing up old news?"

"So I'll go back to my apartment, get money, and then buy us food," Mayu continued, chuckling. "You two should worry about setting up—maybe find those soldier pills that disappeared?"

"Right… fine—do whatever." Sasuke turned on his heel and began walking away. Naruto made an inquisitive noise, yet did not say anything. He followed after Sasuke, only taking one glance back at his female teammate.

Mayu watched them go until they disappeared from her sight. _"Right!"_ She nodded her head, and then took her down the street she had seen the pink spot go. To her surprise, it had been an alley. The kunoichi looked left and right before entering the alley way. The kunoichi found herself staring at the back of the pink-haired kunoichi. She was sitting on top of a wooden fence. Mayu scratched her cheek nervously—a habit. "Sakura… san…" Her voice was nervous as well. The pink-haired kunoichi had not turned. She had not even moved. Perhaps the girl did not hear. "Sakura-san!" Still the other kunoichi did not respond. "Look—you're probably still pissed at me. I can understand that you want to blame _someone_ for your mother's death… but that isn't my fault. You can't go on harboring this hatred—it'll only make you drown, halting your growth. I know how much it hurts to lose your family, and I-"

"You're late," Sakura interrupted, turning her head.

"Huh…?"

Suddenly two presences were made known to Mayu. She turned around. Seconds later, two kunoichi dropped down a few feet from her. However, their eyes were focused on Sakura. "Sorry, Sakura…" The blond one spoke, crossing her arms. "My co-worker suddenly disappeared and he's responsible for closing up shop. Hinata-chan met me on the way."

"Forgive us for our tardiness."

"Hinata-chan, Ino-chan…!"

The two kunoichi finally looked her way. Ino furrowed her brow, seemingly in confusion. "Who are you to say my name with such familiarity?" She looked Mayu up and down, scrutinizing her. "I've never seen you before in my life." The kunoichi flushed in embarrassment. Of course, she had not explained anything yet. Currently, she had no right to speak to the two girls without formality. Mayu opened her mouth to explain, but once again Sakura interrupted her.

"This is the one who became my replacement on Team 7." The pink-haired kunoichi stopped up on the fence. She then jumped off, landing behind Hinata and Ino. The two kunoichi's sudden expressions caused Mayu to flinch. They looked utterly disgusted. Well, Ino looked disgusted. Hinata's eyes were narrowed—almost glaring. _Crap_, what had she told them, Mayu thought.

"So _you're_ the deceiver!" Ino placed her hands on her hips. The Ishikari winced at the tone in her voice. "To think you have the balls to show your face in front of Sakura!" The blond kunoichi stomped towards Mayu. "I can't believe you! Lying to us, _pretending_ to be our friend—you've got some nerve! How dare you steal Sakura's life?!"

"That's not what happened! It was a ju-"

"What you did was horrible… I never thought something like this could happen."

"Hinata-chan, I didn't-"

"Please do not speak so informal with me." The young Hyuga had a frown on her face. She turned her back to Mayu. "Sakura-chan, shall we go and train now?"

"… Yeah, let's go," she answered. Ino scoffed lightly before turning on her heel. The blond began to walk down alley. Hinata followed after her. Sakura turned her head. An uncharacteristic smirk appeared on her face. "You don't belong here." The Ishikari's eyes widen. "You and your clan were meant to be kept a secret, but… really you were always meant to be isolated. _You_ don't belong _anywhere_." The pink-haired kunoichi leered at Mayu. "I will make your pathetic life a living hell. You can _count_ on it." Slowly, Sakura turned her head back and walked away.

Once the three kunoichi disappeared from sight, Mayu dropped down to her knees. Strangled breaths escaped her mouth. _"Hinata…"_ This was not supposed to happen. She was supposed to explain everything. But of course… She shouldn't have been expecting things to turn out the way they did with Naruto and Sasuke. And yet… She had been hoping. _"Ino…"_ She had hoped they could be friends—all of them, even Sakura. But this was not the case. The kunoichi shut her eyes, trying to catch the tears. She balled up her fist. _"Damn it…! Damn it! Damn it!"_ It was not the warm welcome she had been expecting.

--

"Jeez, where's Mayu, anyway?" Naruto grumbled as stared up at the ceiling. He and his male teammate had been waiting for what seemed like hours for their female teammate to return with whatever she was doing. Outside, it had gotten quite dark. The blond narrowed his eyes. His arms were locked behind his head, and his back was against the floor. Sasuke gave him a quick glance, and then went back to focusing on his handstands. Naruto stuck his bottom lip out as he sat up. "She said she'd be right behind us."

"Quite complaining, Naruto." Sasuke sighed out. He then returned to a sitting position. "But… This is a good time." The blond shifted his eyes to Sasuke, who was staring right at him with a serious look on his face. Actually, that was normal for him, but it still tweaked Naruto's curiosity. "In the forest, if that blast hadn't killed him, you would have been responsible for that guy's death." Blue eyes grew wide. "How do you feel about that?"

Honestly, he thought nothing of it. In the end, it was not he who had ended the man's life. Naruto gave a shrug of indifference. "I don't know—bad, I guess…" He looked down at the floor. "It would have been my first kill." First kill… The words repeated in his head like a broken record. Unconsciously, his body tensed. How could he have been so unaware? His first kill—the first time he took a life was important. Sasuke and Mayu had already had their first kills. Frankly, to take a life is something he would rather not do, but as a ninja he had to. And today might have been the day. "I feel guilty now… Is that how you guys felt?"

"No. I can safely say that neither I nor Mayu felt guilt when we killed the first time." The Uchiha shook his head. "Maybe afterwards, some guilt was felt, but… it wasn't much. As ninja, we _have_ to kill. When I killed, it was for you—for our village. Though, it is okay to feel guilty, Naruto. That's what makes you human. But you must not dwell on this fact. It'll make you unstable. As ninja, we all need to have that first kill, so that later it won't affect us as much." Naruto slowly nodded head. "That is why… I did not kill that guy. I wanted to deal the finishing blow so that you could _learn_."

"I… I get it."

"Good… Since we're stronger than we were, I'm sure we'll get harder missions, so killing might be required. It's better to learn now than later." Sasuke fell on his back. He stared up at the ceiling. "I imagine Mayu would have said the same." Naruto absentmindedly nodded his head again.

"Thanks, Sasuke."

"Don't mention I-"

The young Uchiha stopped, suddenly sitting up. Naruto, catching his teammate's sudden attentiveness, also became alert. "What is it?" Sasuke did not answer. He, instead, stood up and motioned for the blond to follow him. Once they were out of the room, Naruto felt it as well. Another presence was outside. If it had been Mayu, she would have just walked right in not stand outside the door for who knows how long. No, whoever it was had been _lurking_. Naruto swallowed hard as Sasuke got into position. The Uchiha would slide open the door, while his job was to charge. Sasuke counted down on his hand. However, before he could get to one, a voice caught their attention.

"Uchiha Sasuke and Uzumaki Naruto, I did not come here, looking to fight."

"What—hey, I know that voice!" Naruto slide open the door with a grin on his face.

Sasuke, confused, only watched his friend and teammate leap outside the door. He moved in the doorway to see Naruto being kept at bay by sand. His dark eyes widen in surprise. Gaara, the former Sand shinobi was standing outside his home. His obnoxious teammate was trying—and failing—to give Gaara an Uzumaki-styled hug, he assumed. Sea green eyes stared impassively up at the blond, who was trying desperately to wiggle free and continue with his bear hug. Sasuke raised an eyebrow. He wasn't wearing that heavy-looking gourd with him. How strange for sand to just appear. "So… still have your punishment?"

Gaara turned his attention to the Uchiha. Slowly, the red-head nodded his head. It was surprising how docile he seemed. The murderous look was no longer in his eyes. Sasuke briefly wonder what Ino's punishment for him was. "I heard this team was back in the Leaf, so I… wanted to… _drop by_." The Uchiha's lip twitched. It sounded as if he wasn't used to slang term, and yet it was being forced on him—probably Ino's doing. "I know that it's night, but-"

"It's fine! It's fine! We're just having a sleepover—Mayu, too!"

"_Oi_… Don't call it that!"

"Hey! Can Gaara join us!? Mayu will be so surprised!" Naruto turned to his teammate. Sasuke sighed heavily, yet nodded his head. It wasn't like Gaara was a threat anymore. "Yes…!" Impulsively, Naruto grabbed Gaara's hand and dragged him inside. Rolling his eyes, Sasuke closed the door, and then followed the two back to the room. "So you came to see me?"

Gaara, once again, nodded. "And Mayu-chan, of course. Actually, I wanted to specifically speak with her." Both shinobi of Team 7 looked confused. "It is about the girl she once was." Naruto and Sasuke exchanged a look. "I'm not too sure, but I believe that girl, Haruno Sakura, is very bitter about the way things turned out for her."

"What do you mean?" Naruto asked. He and Sasuke sat down on the floor. Gaara hesitantly did the same before continuing.

"That girl's mother died in the invasion."

"What?! Sakura's mom?!"

"Yes. She told Ino-san—I mean Ino that it was Mayu-chan's fault. Another girl was there at the time well—Hyuga Hinata, I think her name was." The red-haired boy closed his eyes for a moment, and then resumed talking. "She, along with Ino, seems not to like Mayu-chan anymore now. It… upsets me because Ino is also my friend."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. He did not like the sound of this. Sure, Naruto and himself were her friends, but Mayu had also made friends with Ino and Hinata while she had Sakura's body. If that pink-haired fangirl was bitter, there was no telling what type of lies she had come up with. If Ino and Hinata disliked her, Mayu would be devastated. And more than likely try not to show it. This did not bode well. Sasuke looked over to his teammate. Judging from his facial expression, he was thinking along the same lines. "Thanks for telling us this, Gaara! We'll take care of this!" Naruto pumped a fist. "We'll just explain to them that it was all a misunderstanding."

"I don't think that is a good action. I came to tell that to Mayu-chan, so that she would figure it out herself. If you get involved, I'm sure she'll only think she can't take care of things herself." The blond lowered his arm, knowing that Gaara was right in his analysis of his female teammate.

"Fine, we won't do anything… for now." Sasuke frowned, not really wanting to back out. "But if Sakura steps out of line, we'll be forced to interfere." He knew the damages a determined fangirl could cause. The Uchiha mentally shuddered, thinking back to his academy days. Girls are crazy and extreme, going to such lengths that would make the strongest shinobi cringe… "We will take care of it for her if she can't."

"Yeah!" Naruto agreed with a nod.

"As will I," Gaara nodded.

* * *

Finished January 8, 2010

I was going to add more, but… Honestly, there's nothing more I can add to this chapter that I can think of, so I'll just post it tonight. Oh, and _Happy New Year_!

**Shizuma and other bad guy**: Well, I don't believe they ever said what happened to those two who were on Orochimaru's team. And if they did, I sure as hell missed it. So I added them here for the purpose of… training Team 7. Already, I think they are improving. But then again, you're the judge, not me.

**Sakura**: Honestly, I cannot wait until I write the chapter where it's mainly in her point of view—or something like that. I see myself enjoying the character she is and _will_ become. Look forward to her recurring appearances.

Next time: _Smooth Criminal_

I'm looking forward to _any_ reviews.


	23. Smooth Criminal

Uchiha Sasuke angrily stomped through the hallway. His lazy teammates were supposed to be up forty-five minutes ago. Honestly, he should not have allowed them to stay up so long last night. They were like children. He scoffed and almost rolled his eyes. How many times had it been now? Five, ten… twenty? The young Uchiha actually lost count. Both Naruto and Mayu invited Gaara over many times for sleepovers—_without_ permission. Sasuke was half surprised nothing had been broken… yet. His teammates were so excited to have Gaara so close. He could understand it, though. Naruto and Gaara were alike. Mayu had lost friends. It was natural for them to cling to the red-haired boy. "Speaking of clinging…" Sasuke's eye twitched. The sight that had greeted him when he opened the door to his room had caused the twitch.

The three—his teammates and Gaara—were lying down on the same futon. The red head was in the middle of his two teammates, eyes closed. Naruto had his arms wrapped around Gaara's arm. He was snoring loudly and talking in his sleep. Mayu's head was placed on Gaara's chest. Her fingers gripped the shirt Gaara was currently wearing. A tight frown appeared on Sasuke's face. "Gaara…!" His voice came from clenched teeth. "Why do you let them do that?" Slowly, the eyes of his guest opened. He sat up cautiously, not wanting to wake his friends. His impassive sea green eyes stared at Sasuke for a moment.

"Are you… what they call… jealous?"

"NO!" was his quick response, which disturbed his teammates' slumber. The two groaned lightly, turning. "You idiots, wake up! We have to go soon!" His face was flushed. Gaara had seemed to smirk smugly. But that had to be his eyes playing tricks on him, right?

"What the hell, Sasuke?!" Mayu sat up, wiping at her eyes. "We're not supposed to have any missions today!"

"Yeah, it's our day off," Naruto agreed, scratching his head. He removed himself from Gaara's person and sat up. He rubbed the crust from his eyes and yawned. "Just a few minutes more, and then we'll train—promise!"

"Get up and get dress… or no more overnight stays."

Mayu gasped in that overly dramatic way of hers, while Naruto looked about ready to cry. The Uchiha sighed and crossed his arms. "Don't be like that, Sasuke!" The kunoichi hurriedly stood. "It's our mistake!" She covered a yawn with the back of her hand. She directed her blue eyes toward Gaara. "Sorry, Gaara-kun, you heard him. Time to go to work." The red head nodded his head before slowly rising.

"Yes, I, too, must return to my dwelling. Ino gets quite upset when I wake her this early, but I do not have a choice."

"Gaara-kun, you're so cute!" Mayu wrapped her arms around him, giving a small peck on his love kanji. "Kissu…!" Both of her teammates gave her flat looks. However, their looks were ignored as the kunoichi released her friend. "Be sure to visit again, okay?" With a nod, Gaara agreed and stepped away from her.

"Naruto…" He gave a nod in the blond shinobi's direction. He received a cheerful goodbye in response. "Uchiha-san." Sasuke merely grunted. "Then I shall take my leave." Sand swirled around him. Soon, nothing was left of Gaara.

"Isn't it cool how he transports himself like that?"

"Yeah, it's awesome!" Naruto agreed, nodding.

"Get ready, you morons!"

"Jeez… Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed…"

"Shut up, Mayu!"

"Why are you in a rush to go get a D-rank mission, anyway?" Naruto pulled his night shirt over his head. Sasuke crossed his arms over his chest as Mayu covered a yawn.

"Because, I don't think it's a regular D-rank." His opinion caused his two teammates to look at him in curiosity. "This mission is coming directly from the Hokage's office. Both pairs of eyes belonging to his teammates grew. Sasuke smirked. It was an accurate reaction. Generally, genin teams were assigned missions from the Hokage _and_ a few other ninja—sometimes not even from the Hokage. However, this time, only the Fifth was dishing out the mission. It must have been confidential in some way. That, he assumed, meant it was a higher ranking mission. "Like I said, get ready." Both Naruto and Mayu moved about the room hastily. The young Uchiha mentally chuckled. They were just as excited as he was.

--

"S-rank! S-rank! S-rank! S-RANK!" Naruto kicked open the door in his exuberance. The blond strolled right in, completely oblivious to the conversation that was probably taking place in the Hokage's office. Mayu rolled her eyes, hearing the busty leader yelling at her enthusiastic teammate. But she could empathize. The thrill of battle suddenly knocking caused her to also become excited. She had a better time controlling it, though. The kunoichi followed Sasuke into the room, making sure to close the door behind her. If this was confidential, then she would rather be safe than having Tsunade yell at _her_.

Once inside, Mayu realized that the Fifth _was_ having a conversation with someone. Actually, it was two other ninja. Both looked equally annoyed at Naruto's noisy entrance. The two belonged to Team Gai. However, their sensei and third teammate were not present. The kunoichi stepped forward beside Sasuke. His hands were shoved in his pockets. He saw them, too. He only chose to ignore them. Mayu mentally scoffed, listening to Naruto argue with their leader. That is until her patience wore out. "NARUTO!" The blond instantly stiffened. "Get your ass over here!" Rapidly, the shinobi nodded his head and quickly stood beside her. He chuckled nervously under her fierce gaze. Mayu cleared her throat before turning her attention back to Tsunade, who looked mildly impressed. "Sorry, Tsunade-sama," she apologized.

The female Hokage leaned back in her chair. "What's this about an S-rank? I did not say anything about giving an S-rank mission to you," she remarked. Immediately, that comment put a damper on Naruto's thoughts.

"It's Naruto," Sasuke answered as if it were obvious. Tsunade shrugged her shoulders.

"_Hm_… Fair enough," she said. "Although, this is not an S-rank, it could be considered to be better than what both teams have gotten since the invasion." At the mention of the small confrontation with the Sand and Sound, every genin tensed for various reasons. "Originally, I was just going to assign this mission to Team Gai. However, since they're short two people, I decided to make this a joint mission."

"I understand that, Hokage-sama, but why Team 7?" Tenten glanced at the three younger, inexperienced ninja. Tsunade closed her eyes, seemingly in thought.

"Good combination, I suppose."

"_Yeah right… She's probably tired of Naruto's bitching."_ Sasuke had to refrain from rolling his eyes at the thought.

"This mission will take place in the Land of Udon," Tsunade continued. She briefly wondered why she had a sudden urge to smack the young Uchiha upside the head. "This land is known for its production of noodles. Actually, it's there that we buy our supply."

"Yes, but what is our mission?" Neji questioned.

"Recently, there have been acts there, which have caused the Daimyo of the land to become apprehensive. At first, they were minor crimes—vandalism, petty theft, etc. However, apparently expensive artifacts and paintings have come up missing." The woman narrowed her eyes. "I want Team Gai and Team 7 to investigate and take care of the one responsible. If possible, recover the missing items as well." Tsunade was answered by affirmative nods.

"Hold on. Not that I'm questioning your judgment, Hokage-sama," Sasuke began. "But why is this considered joint mission? Seems pretty simple to me. One team sounds like enough to take care of this problem." Their leader was quiet for a moment. Her silence caused the five younger ninja to lean in unconsciously.

"I suppose I should tell you." She rubbed her chin lightly as if she were still thinking it over. "The reason I originally wanted Gai's team for this mission is because Hyuga Neji happens to be a part of it. The Daimyo stated in a report that the thief uses a style much like the Gentle Fist to knock out guards." The Hyuga in question merely frowned. "I've gone through previous reports and there have not been any ninja assigned to that village or any missing-nin, hailing from the Hyuga clan. Perhaps someone has stolen the clan's secrets?"

"_Impossible…! Obviously, it's an imposter!"_ Neji narrowed his eyes.

"As I said before, though, Team Gai is missing two of its members, so Team 7 will be accompanying. Question this guy, and if the Daimyo will allow it, bring him here for questioning." Again, the Hokage received nods. "Also, I am assigning Ishikari Mayu as leader for this mission." Several surprised looks were given to her.

"Excuse me, but why her?" Tenten questioned. "She's younger than Neji and I. One of us should be the leader."

"Perhaps, but I trust her. Mayu has proven to be quite the leader in the past." Her eyes glanced in Neji's direction. "Your teammate has been under her command, I hear." The Hyuga looked just as confused as Tenten. "Alright, you're dismissed. You are to leave the village immediately after gathering supplies."

"Yes, Hokage-sama!" After bowing in respect, the five genin exited the office. Tsunade clasped her hands together.

"_Should I have told them?"_ she thought, frowning. _"No, I'm sure they can handle it. I have faith in that team."_

--

Mayu grinned as she packed her bag. She could actually hear Naruto's chants of 'Mission, mission, mission!' through the walls. She shook her head. Her teammate would never change. His nature was refreshing. The kunoichi chuckled. _"No wonder Hinata-chan…"_ Her thought trailed off as a frown appeared on her face. Speaking of the female Hyuga—she was still refusing to speak with her. Ino as well… Mayu stopped her movements and sighed heavily. _"How much longer…?"_ She relaxed her body against the back of the chair, eyes up at the ceiling. Eyelids lowered over blue eyes. She clenched her fist, only to settle down again. With another sigh, she closed her eyes. If only it was Team 8 that they were accompanying for this mission. She would have more chances to talk with Hinata and explain what had really happened. Thanks to Sakura, Mayu seemed to be hated by her fellow kunoichi.

And it hurt.

Of course she would always have Naruto and Sasuke backing her up. Gaara was pretty much there for her as well. Still, she had formed a bond with the two girls while she was in Sakura's body. That bond had been chewed and damaged. Soon, she feared, their link would be completely severed. However, it was not only Mayu who was suffering. Sakura, too, had become badly affected. Really, it was no wonder she had been behaving in such a manner. Months of her life were gone and on top of that her mother died. Mayu wished she could explain the situation clearly, not only to Hinata and Ino, but to Sakura, too.

The Leaf kunoichi was pulled from her thoughts by her teammate barging right into her apartment. Quickly, she sat up straight and looked towards the door. Thankfully, the blond had a satisfactory bag strapped to his back. Naruto pumped a fist into the air. "Come on, Mayu! Let's go!" His giant grin must have been contagious because her cheeks suddenly hurt. "Hey…" He quieted down. "You okay…?" Mayu stood, fastening her own bag before placing the strap over her shoulder.

"It's nothing—just thinking about the mission. I get the feeling this will be much more than a simple retrieval mission." Mayu lightly shoved Naruto out of the apartment. She turned and began to lock the door. Why she locked it in a village full of _ninja_—force of habit, she assumed. "But my worries are pointless. There's nothing we can't handle right, Naruto?" The kunoichi turned to face the blond. To her surprise, he wore a frown. "Naruto, what-"

"You don't have to lie to me, ya know. I know you're thinking about Hinata and Ino." Mayu's eyes widen. She then looked away, ashamed.

"Yeah, I know. I shouldn't lie to you guys, and I don't want to… It's just it's my problem to solve." The blond shinobi was silent, causing Mayu to nervously scratch her cheek. "So don't-"

"I thought… I thought the moment we became Team 7 was the moment it stopped being 'I' and 'me.' I thought it was there that it became 'us' and 'we.' Mayu... me and Sasuke are your teammates and friends. You can tell us anything!" The kunoichi stared at her teammate for a moment before cracking a smile.

"Yeah, I know. Sorry, Naruto… It's a habit. Being a secret for most of my life does that to me." Mayu patted his shoulder before pulling him into a one-armed hug. Surprised, Naruto slowly returned the hug. "Thank you!" She released him. "I understand. I will try to destroy these barriers of mine." Her smile was mirrored by the blond.

"You know, Mayu…"

"_Hm_…?"

"You have a great smile." The shinobi grinned as he turned his back on her.

"What the hell, Naruto?!" Mayu laughed out in embarrassment as she smacked her teammate's back. This action caused the blond to go forward, almost slamming into the adjacent wall. Not noticing her teammate's sudden pain, the kunoichi continued to laugh. "Enough with the mushy stuff already. Let's go!"

"Yea-Yeah…" Naruto's fingers twitched until the ache went away. _"Just how strong is she?!"_

"Oh, shoot—I forgot something!" Mayu looked up in thought. "I should probably buy some. There's no telling how long this mission will last."

"What, you need weapons or something else? Don't worry about that, me or Sasuke will give you-"

"It's definitely not something you guys would have!" The kunoichi waved her hands in front of her red face, slightly embarrassed. "You just go on without me! I swear I'll catch up quickly!" Naruto gave his teammate a dubious look, but then shrugged. He walked ahead, telling her to hurry. Mayu waved him off. Once she could no longer see him, she released a sigh as she put down her hand. _"It's like they don't realize I'm a girl sometimes…"_ she thought, lip twitching.

--

The kunoichi pushed the items into her bag after buying them. After waving goodbye to the shop owner, Mayu began to walk toward the door. However, before she could reach the entrance, the door opened. The person on the other side caused Mayu to tense. Their eyes connected. The kunoichi gritted her teeth as the other customer gave a smile. Unconsciously, the Ishikari took a step back. "Sakura-san…" she murmured as the pink-haired girl stepped into the business establishment.

"Ishikari… or should I address you as… thief?" The smile she swore seriously unnerved Mayu. Her blue eyes quickly shifted to girl's arm. There were no bandages. Sakura had the mark exposed as if it wasn't even there. The green-eyed noticed her gaze. She smirked before reaching up with that arm, pushing her short hair from her face. "I rather like this addition to my body. It has come in handy several times already." Mayu hastily looked away. Sakura continued to scrutinize the kunoichi in front of her. "You have a bag with you. I'm guessing your team is leaving the village?" It was hard to tell if she was trying to be friendly or fake. Sakura stepped closer. "How lucky it is for your team to leave the village, while other genin teams don't. You must have won the Hokage's favor somehow, right? Not only are you a thief, but you're also a pitiful suck up. What's it like kissing ass all day?" A tight frown made his way onto Mayu's face. Her fingers clenched into fists. "_Humph_… Why don't you do me a favor while you're out of the village, ne?" Sakura stepped closer. She was now at Mayu's side.

"What…?" She made the mistake of asking. Sakura grinned before answering.

"Die."

Mayu narrowed her eyes and bit her lip. She had become such a hateful person. So casually, she had told Mayu to die. The original Sakura could never say something so vile. The Ishikari squeezed her eyes shut, feeling the cold sweat slide down her cheek. She had screwed so much stuff up by being in Sakura's body. Because of that… What right did she have to retort anything? In Sakura's eyes, she must seem like the bad guy. Mayu mentally sighed. "I'm sorry you feel that way, Sakura-san. I thought perhaps we could move pass our differences, but I see that's impossible."

"Of course it is, stupid. You are my natural enemy. Stealing my life—I won't forgive you!"

The hairs on the back of Mayu's neck stood up on end. She whirled around bringing her arm up, absolutely stunned that Sakura would actually try to attack. Trying to block the attack was risky especially since Sakura wielded a kunai. Mayu clenched her teeth, prepared for whatever was about to happen. However, before contact could be made between the two kunoichi, another had interfered. He had caught Sakura's wrist before she could bring down her weapon. Slowly, blue eyes slid to the image sewed into the back of his black shirt. It was the Uchiha clan's symbol. _"Sasuke…! He's gotten so fast!"_

The Uchiha's eyes flickered from Sakura's eyes to the kunai in her clenched hand. "Drop it," he told her. He squeezed her wrist for added guarantee that the kunoichi would release the deadly weapon. It fell to the floor with a clang, alerting the shop's owner, who told them that there was no sparring allowed in his store. Sasuke narrowed his dark eyes at the pink-haired kunoichi before letting her go. Sakura rubbed her wrist lightly; her green eyes remained on his person. "You know… I don't take too kindly to those who intend to hurt my teammates." Sakura licked her smirked lips.

"Sasuke-kun, it was only a bit of sparring. Besides, she's not really your teammate, right?" The pink-haired kunoichi ignored the near growl that came from the young shinobi. "It's nice that you're defending this… thing. It shows you have a sensitive side, Sasuke-kun. I really like that." Without another word, Sasuke turned his back on her. He grabbed Mayu's wrist and made his way to the door. "Come back safely, Sasuke-kun!" Sakura waved cutely. Once the two were gone from her sight, the sweet smile had transformed into a sadistic grin. "And make sure that bitch doesn't come back at all!"

Outside, Mayu was nearly being dragged by her teammate who had yet to say anything concerning the previous situation. Damn… How embarrassing was that? She hated this… She absolutely hated feeling this way. Mayu did not mind the help, but in that circumstance, help should not have been necessary. The kunoichi rubbed at her eye, feeling the familiar stinging. Damn—it irritated her to no end. And what's worse, it had been enough to cause additional wetness in her eyes. "H-How did you know?" Her voice cracked, adding further to her discomfiture.

Sasuke halted his movements, forcing Mayu to do the same. He, however, did not turn to face her nor did he release her wrist. It was silent. Of course it was. Hardly anyone was awake at this time. It was another downside of ninja—getting up way earlier than anyone else. The kunoichi felt the sudden gust of wind against her skin, causing her to shiver. This is what made Sasuke finally react. "I was passing by and I saw you. You were running behind schedule, so I planned on making you hurry-" Mayu almost rolled her eyes. "Sakura, though, went in before I had a chance to. I waited to see your confrontation." At this point, he finally turned to her, frown evident on his face. "You want to tell me what _that_ was all about, Mayu?"

After another moment of silent, the kunoichi took back her hand. "I felt guilt about what happened to her." Blue eyes narrowed as she thought back to the look on Sakura's face. "I guess I unconsciously-" Sasuke scoffed, causing Mayu to glare at him. "I can't help it. Even though what happened to her mother was not my fault, I still feel like-"

"You don't owe her _anything_! What happened to her, happened—it's her problem now."

"How can you be so heartless when you lost your family, too!? Shouldn't you be a little more… sympathetic?"

"She isn't my teammate. I don't need to show compassion to a stranger. And yeah, I lost my family, but strangers only pissed me off with their pity and guilty looks." Sasuke crossed his arms. "It was you and Naruto who caused me to feel a bit better. My teammates are who helped me, not strangers who know nothing." Mayu looked down. The young Uchiha released a sigh. "Mayu, let her own teammates help her. You and she are comrades—nothing more. If Sakura doesn't want your friendship, then move on. It's her choice. Don't go near her unless there isn't a choice." He paused, eyes glancing around. "She… She really tried to cause you harm just now. Neither me nor Naruto want you in danger if we can prevent it, so stop going around a person like that."

The blue-eyed kunoichi stared at her teammate, mouth agape. This action slightly unnerved Sasuke. "You've… changed so much, Sasuke." Slowly, a small smile appeared. Mayu suddenly broke into a grin. "You and Naruto saying the mushiest shit ever—you've both grown into such attractive men!" The Ishikari walked pass him, oblivious to the fact that Sasuke's cheeks were stained pink. "Well, we'd better go. Like you said, we're already behind schedule." She walked away from him, expecting to be followed. Sasuke smacked his cheeks before turning to do so.

"Idiot…" he murmured, taking off after her.

Both genin were unaware that cold, green eyes watched their departure. Eyelids slowly lowered until they were completely closed. Chuckles erupted from the watcher's mouth. A hand reached up and covered one of her—now—opened eyes. "It's true," she whispered. "You have indeed changed, Sasuke-kun." Again, she laughed, placing one leg over the over. She leaned forward, using her raised knee, elbow, arm, and hand to prop up her chin. She watched the fading back of the young Uchiha with predatory eyes. She licked her lips. "How disgusting…" She smirked. "If only you'd return to your awesome, angst-ridden self. How cool would you be then, Sasuke-kun?"

"Sakura." A monotonous voice caught her attention. Frowning, she lifted her head up. She recognized the voice right away. It belonged to her sensei, Mariko. Two others had dropped down behind the older kunoichi. It was her whole team, coming to get her. She had been late now that she thought about it. The pink-haired kunoichi stood up. She faced her team. Her eyes scanned over them. Watanabe Mariko—she was somewhere near thirty in years. An excellent genjutsu specialist, she occasionally sparred with Hinata's sensei, Yuhi Kurenai, just to see who was better. Her taijutsu was not all that impressive, but she made up for that in ninjutsu. She was not as good as other jounin, but she was pretty close to the top. She had very short brown hair. If it wasn't for the color of her hair, one could mistake her for being bald at a distance. However, she did have hair—bangs, in fact, that hanged a few centimeters above her eyes. Speaking of her eyes—they were sharp, piercing grey eyes. Mariko's observational skills were advanced.

Moving along, Sakura's eyes landed on her dark-haired teammate, who upon realizing she was being watched took a step back. Tsuchi Kin—she was a long-ranged fighter, using senbon as her weapon of choice. Her intelligence was high for someone who lived in a house full of dogs. However, it was because of that that the kunoichi was fast. Her body had been trained to keep up with animals with four legs. She, at the moment, was the fastest on the team. Sakura smirked, seeing the girl flinch. She was weak, though; scared and nervous of her.

Becoming bored with girl, Sakura shifted her eyes to the last member of the team. Tayuya—she was an orphan, so she had no surname. She was a foul-mouth kunoichi, but she was the smartest—the strategist of the team. She used her flute often in battle, making her a long-ranged fighter. Her taijutsu skills were horrible, worse than anything she had ever seen before. Her strength was lacking as well. Although she wore a similar mark on the back of her neck, Tayuya was weak. Sakura felt the red-head glaring at her. She could sense the curse words bubbling up inside of Tayuya. She might put up a good tough girl act, but she, too, feared her. Briefly, she wondered what type of interactions her two teammates had with that imposter. "Hey, bitch! You know how long we were fucking waiting?!"

Chuckling, Sakura quickly moved and reappeared in front of the older girl. Startled, Tayuya reared back, only to have her shoulders grabbed and pulled forward. The green-eyed kunoichi smirked, moving her face as close as possible to Tayuya's without touching. Her brown eyes grew wide, feeling the killer intent radiating from the younger kunoichi's green eyes. Her body shook as she broke into a cold sweat. She gritted her teeth, feeling the girl's grip become harsher, surely leaving bruises. "I don't know… Why don't you tell me, Tayu-chan?" It was a question that was not meant to be answer. Pissed and ashamed, Tayuya squeezed her eyes shut in order not to look at her teammate.

"That's enough, Sakura." Mariko's indifferent voice entered her ears. Instantly, she was released. Tayuya mentally sighed as she moved to stand beside Kin. Their bitch of a sensei did not care what Sakura did to her. She had lost her husband during the invasion and so the woman, although not speaking out loud, blamed his death on the Sound. And since she came from the Sound, Tayuya had been her number one target. The only reason Kin did not get the same treatment was because she was the one who informed the Hokage of the invasion. Also, she now had the Inuzuka clan to back her up. But not her—Tayuya had nothing to help her in this strange village. Hell, Sakura could attack her and that woman wouldn't do a thing to stop her. "Let's just get to training."

"Hold on a minute, sensei." Sakura finally turned her eyes away from her two teammates. She could see the terror in their bodies. Pathetic—they were older, but they feared her; it was truly pathetic. "I want to start learning genjutsu."

"Why?" Mariko asked, looking at her subordinate. Sakura's smirk was downright eerie. The way her eyes expanded and her hair seemed to stand made her look wild like a beast.

"Because… We have to be prepared for when the genin squads get together in a few months and fight. It's what the Third order before he retired again, right?" Mariko nodded.

"Yes, that is coming up fast, isn't it? Very well then." If possible the expression on Sakura's face became fiercer.

Tayuya and Kin shuddered.

--

Three genin yawned simultaneously, causing a flat look to come from Tenten. Her teammate, Hyuga Neji, remained impassive. _"They're so in sync that's it's become annoying!"_ she thought, eye twitching. Not only that, the three kept punching each other while calling out a random animal's name. Well, it hadn't been totally random. One could spot a bird, yell out 'bird' and proceed to punch their closest teammate in the arm. When asked what the heck their problem was, they had answered 'training' and with a straight face, too! _"What a weird team!"_

"This is so boring! How much longer till we get to the village?" Naruto rubbed his sore arm. His male teammate had spotted a flock of birds and punched for each bird he saw. Sasuke had the advantage because of those keen eyes of his. Mayu glanced back at her teammate grinning nervously. "Don't give me that look! Just tell me—I can take it." Sasuke, the jerk, scoffed, as did Neji.

"Well, we're still about an hour away," the kunoichi answered. This made the blond ninja release a dramatic sigh. "We could do something to pass the time." Mayu stopped, causing the others to halt their movements. They stared at her in silence… That is until Naruto punched Sasuke, yelling squirrel. Chuckling, she continued. "As two separate teams, I realize that we know almost nothing about each other. So how about we go around and say something about ourselves?"

"Why—that seems pointless," Sasuke remarked, rubbing his stomach. His teammate's hit was harder than normal.

"Maybe not to you—someone who hasn't reached leadership status… I can't expect you to understand it with your still immature mentality." For her response, she was shown a very inappropriate hand gesture. "Trust me—it'll help me analyze this team better and make better judgments in battle, if it comes down to it, based on the people. We can ask one question about each other." She turned her eyes to Neji and Tenten. "Why don't we start with one of you?" The younger kunoichi crossed their arms. "I know you're curious as to why it seems Haruno Sakura has been replaced by me, right?"

"Actually, yeah, I have been wondering about that," Tenten agreed with a nod of her head. She narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "They don't normally just _replace_ team members."

"Yes, and what did the Hokage mean when she said I was under your leadership. I've never met you before in my life," Neji remarked.

"_Ah_, yes… I guess they don't. And of course… when you did meet me, I did not look like I look now. Let's just say that all this time, I've been under special circumstances," Mayu began. "I've always been the kunoichi of Team 7." She received skeptic looks. "Well, my mind has always been, anyway. Explaining it to you would be a bother, so I'll just show you what I mean. Her blue eyes shifted to her dark-haired teammate. "Sasuke—lend me your body for a couple seconds." The young Uchiha shrugged. "Alright…!" The kunoichi performed the proper hand signs. "**Ishikari Style: Mind Transfer Jutsu**!" She extended the ram sign in Sasuke's direction. The two teammates' bodies went limp. Tenten and Neji looked on in curiosity. The older kunoichi remembered that jutsu quite well. Haruno Sakura had used it against Neji's cousin, Hinata. If this girl successfully carried out that jutsu, she would have her teammate's traits, right down to his advanced bloodline.

Her body tensed in anticipation.

Slowly, the two rolled their backs up until they stood upright. Their eyes snapped open at the same time. "It seems like it worked." Sasuke's voice came from the girl's body. The young Uchiha's head nodded in agreement. Tenten's eyes expanded, as did Neji's. It was just like Hinata's match in the preliminaries fights of the chuunin exam! "Now, switch back." Sasuke's hand came up.

"Just a moment." Mayu's voice came from the boy's body. "I want to do something first."

"If you do something I don't approve of, I'm going to kiss Tenten while I'm in your body."

"WHAT?!"

"You wouldn't dare!" However, the impassive look on her own face told Mayu otherwise. "Fine—jeez, Sasuke, you're no fun." Her hands slammed together. "Release…!" After a moment, Mayu spoke again—this time in her own body. "As you can see, with a jutsu like this, switching bodies is possible—for my clan at least." She turned her eyes back to the stunned face of Tenten. "However, a much more advanced jutsu from my clan caused me to end up in Sakura-san's body and she in mine. So that's why I said I've always been the kunoichi of Team 7. I was there when the squad came into existence. Naruto and Sasuke were already used to me, so they didn't want to give me up. Aren't they just the cutest?"

Both boys smacked her upside the head.

"You didn't cast the jutsu yourself?" Tenten asked, ignoring the previous actions. Mayu shook her head.

"I don't have that much experience," she answered. "Also, Tsunade-sama must have heard about it from the Third, so that's why she said what she said." Grinning, she turned her back to the group. "Now that that's out of the way, let's continue, ne?" The kunoichi took to the tree, causing the others to do the same. "Since you asked me a question, Tenten, I'd like to ask you something as well."

"Shoot."

"You're the only girl a part of your team, right? How does that make you feel?" Her eyes glanced back at the older kunoichi, who looked more than a little surprised. Mayu smirked. "Being in the same boat, I want to know what your thoughts are." Tenten was quiet for a moment.

"Well, I like my team… but sometimes, it can get a little annoying." She ignored the slightly offended look from her teammate. "At times, I can't even hear myself think and they don't listen to me, and they barely ever shut up. And they refuse to understand why I act a certain way every month. It's like they think I'm a guy! I want to strangle them all half the time." Mayu laughed outright, and agreed with her, causing her teammates to shoot her dirty looks. "But they're still my team. I wouldn't trade them for anything."

Mayu nodded her head. _"Interesting,"_ she thought. _"I think I might enjoy working with Tenten."_ Unbeknownst to her, her smirk grew. Naruto, who was by her side, grinned nervously.

"_Why does that look scare me…?"_ he thought. "Oh wait—I've got a question!" The blond looked back at Neji. "You're Hinata's cousin, so why were you so mean to her in the chuunin exam—even before she fought?"

"… My resentment toward the main branch of the Hyuga clan caused me to utter such words. However, I have seen the error of my ways since then."

"_Eh_…?"

"He means he won't be talking about Hinata like that again," Sasuke clarified for Naruto. The blond had a look of understanding pass his face. "Idiot, why are you asking about Hinata, anyway?" Naruto stiffened at the unexpected question.

"Eh…! What's this—Naruto _likes_ Hinata?" Mayu held up her pinkie. Neji glowered in Naruto's direction as the blond loudly protested.

"No way…! Besides, there's another pretty girl out there. I can't just disappoint her, now can I?" He frowned, trying to mentally wipe away the blush from his face. He quickened his pace as Mayu chuckled.

"_He totally just called her cute,"_ she thought.

--

After reaching the Land of Udon, the group of five was quickly escorted to the Daimyo's palace. They were left in a room to wait for the young Daimyo's arrival. Naruto drummed his fingers on the table the team was currently sitting at. He and his teammates were on one side, while Neji and Tenten were on the sides of the table. The opposite side was unoccupied. Presumably, the Daimyo would sit there. "When is this guy going to get here? We've been waiting for hours!"

"It's only been five minutes," Sasuke corrected.

"It feels like forever!" Naruto groaned, crossing his arms. "I wish he would come already. My legs are falling aslee-"

The lights suddenly went out, causing the group to look around anxiously. "What's going on?! Some type of attack?!" Mayu's question went unanswered because at that moment, moving red, green, and blue lights waved about the room. "What's that…?" Now, she was just really confused. She wasn't the only one.

"_Eh_, I hear music…" Naruto commented.

"And it's coming closer," Sasuke put in.

"_Wait a minute…"_ Mayu thought, narrowing her eyes. "No fucking way," she murmured out loud.

The adjacent door suddenly slid open, revealing a bright light and a dark figure. The light was so intense that the team could only see silhouette of the person. There seemed to be… _flower petals_ dancing around the person. "There are a lot of pretty boys in the world, but he's the most famous of them all!" A woman's voice shifted the group's attention. She had appeared behind them as if she was a ninja. Yet she did not have any indication of being one. She is the one who was throwing the red petals. Another female appeared on top of the table, tossing petals into the air and exclaiming how amazing some guy was.

The group, again, looked toward the open door as the flashy introduction was over. One of the girls had called him Chikara. It—_he_ must be the Daimyo. Sasuke, Tenten, and Naruto's eyes twitched at the sight of the man. Neji and Mayu produced flat looks. Rose petals still flew throughout the room as the man whipped off his jacket. He was a big man, dirty blond hair with long sideburns. His purple-looking eyes were nearly sparkly. His eyebrows were big, but not as big as Gai's or Lee's—thank goodness. His clothes were similar to something Elvis Presley would wear. "Sorry for making you wait, my young comrades!"

"Ch-Chikara-sama…?" Tenten was in a state of disbelief. _"He's worst than Gai-sensei…!"_ she thought. The girls cheered and tossed more and more petals into the air, welcoming their leader. Chikara snapped his fingers. The music stopped, the cheering stopped. All was quiet. "You're our client?" Her voice was hesitant. Anyone could tell she wanted nothing more than for this to be a joke. He sat down at the table, holding out a rose to the weapon's mistress. Her right eye seemed to gain a permanent twitch.

"I am usually quiet by nature."

"Yeah right…!" Naruto muttered. "You're so not-"

"Be nice, Naruto!" Mayu whispered, yanking on her teammate's ear. Nervously, she spoke to the Daimyo. "Do you normally scatter petals like this?"

"Flowers are nice." He gave Mayu a charming smile. For some reason, the kunoichi found herself flushing. "They relax my body and mind. Are my valuable guests relaxed?"

"_Relaxed isn't the word!"_ Sasuke thought, feeling a chill go up his spine. Hesitantly, the others nodded their heads. Neji tried to remain impassive.

"Then, next is…" He snapped his fingers again. The tossing of petals stopped as his servants left the room, smiles on their faces. It was as if they truly enjoyed their jobs. "The reason I requested help of the Leaf village."

"Yes," Mayu agreed. "We heard that things have come up missing from your estate."

"In the beginning, I was not worried, but now… this person has gone _too_ far! Tonight, he threatens to steal my most precious item!"

"Most precious…?" Sasuke repeated.

"That is correct! Two weeks ago, I received a letter that claimed the thief would take it tonight!" The flashy man pulled a piece of paper from his shirt. He set it on the table before sliding it in Mayu's direction. "This is what prompted me to ask the Leaf village for help. No matter what, this painting cannot be stolen. The bandit must be captured at all cost!"

"If I may ask…" Neji began, drawing attention. "What is this painting? Why is it so important?" The Daimyo was quiet for a moment. He then broke out into a grin. The Hyuga almost instantly regretted asking.

"This painting is of my fiancé—the woman I intend to marry!"

At that, the group of young teens fell over in the classic anime style. "What?! You mean the only reason you contacted us was because of something like this?!" Naruto yelled.

"Of course—this painting is the only one of its kind. It's priceless!"

"It's worthless is what it is!" the blond retorted. A punch to the hand quieted Naruto down a bit.

"Forgive him…" Mayu chuckled nervously. "Despite their reactions, we will handle this mission seriously, I assure you. Please tell us about any suspicious person that might want to do something like this?"

"Suspicious person…?" Chikara repeated.

"_Eh_… Never mind—tell us if there have been any new arrivals to your village. That should give us something to start with. Tell us of anyone who arrived in the village before these things began to happen," Mayu amended. Chikara looked up in thought.

"Actually, there were only two. A young foreigner and her 'brother' came to my village," he stated. "However, she only called him brother. They look nothing alike."

"A foreigner…?" Tenten murmured.

"Yes, she is completely different from others I have meant. Her skin is darker, her clothes are different. Even her tongue is foreign! I have only met her once before, but I could not understand a word she said." He crossed his arms. "She was immediately questioned about the things that occurred after her arrival, but she had a rock solid alibi." Chikara frowned as he continued. "Whenever the crimes were being committed, she and her brother were always seen at the music outlet she currently works at. It could not have been them because it takes exactly twenty minutes to get there from here."

Sasuke's eyes narrowed in suspicion. "For a strong alibi, it makes me more doubtful." He crossed his arms. "This foreigner showing up out of nowhere and the disappearances of your things is just too much of a coincidence."

"My thoughts, exactly… Right now, this person is our top suspect," Mayu agreed with a nod. She shifted her eyes back to Chikara. "Anything else you want to tell us?"

"Yes, actually, there is. Soon after their arrival, another two-person group came into the village. They only stayed for a day, but their presence was definitely unforgettable." The man knitted his eyebrows together and stared down at the table. "I did—and still do not—know of their reason for being here. But I do know that my people stayed away from them as they seemed too dangerous."

"Who were they?" Naruto asked.

"Unfortunately, I do not know that either. However, they did wear matching outfits—black cloaks with red clouds printed on them."

The three genin of Team 7 tensed when the description was given. Their eyes widen, they grit their teeth—all in unison. Noticing their reactions, Neji raised a brow wondering why they had responded in such a way. Did they known of people who worn similar attire? "We understand, Chikara-sama!" Mayu suddenly stood up. Her fists were clenched. "We will catch this person! You can count on the Leaf village!" The Daimyo clapped his hands in glee. He stood as well.

"I will be forever in your debt!" Chikara did a small tap dance, freaking out the ninja before giving a white rose to Mayu. He then left in that flamboyant way he came. After a few moments of silence, Tenten finally spoke up.

"Is anyone else half as freaked out as I am?" The males of the squad raised their hands. "Yeah—just checking."

Mayu cleared her throat. She then resumed speaking. "We'll split off into two groups. Tenten, Naruto and I will check out this foreign girl and her brother. I want Sasuke, and Neji to ask the other villagers if they've seen or heard anything. We'll meet up in about two hours, and then we'll head to the scenes of the crimes and see what we can find there." The others stood up.

"Alright!" Naruto shot a fist in the air.

"Why do I have to go with Hyuga?" Sasuke questioned.

"I, too, would rather be paired with _anyone_ else." The two glared at one another. Mayu rolled her eyes, and then sighed heavily.

"Deal with it. Both of you have eyes for detecting the slightest difference in human behavior. I'm counting on you to see if someone is covering for someone else. Besides, you might panic the foreigner with your 'I'm too sexy for this party' looks."

Everyone gave her _WTF_ expressions.

--

"This must be the place," Tenten commented. Even now, music was heard from inside the establishment. "This village really likes music, ne? This is the first time I'm seeing something like this." The blond beside her nodded his head. Their headbands were left in their belongings back at the Daimyo's palace. Naruto tried to get his teammate's attention, but she was ignoring him. His blue eyes glanced in her direction. It wasn't on purpose, he realized. Judging from her furrowed brow, he could guess that she was concentrating.

"_Hm_… Let's go in." Finally, the kunoichi stepped forward, causing Tenten and Naruto to do the same. "We're looking for someone who fits the girl's description. I'm guessing she works in the back because she can't speak the language, so be on the lookout." Mayu pushed open the door. Instantly, the group's ears were filled with sounds—cheering, screaming, and even body movements. What they saw were villagers—mostly teens—dancing and laughing. The large room was dark, but there were flashing lights going all around.

"It's so loud!" Naruto yelled over the noise.

"Let's just find the girl and get out of here!" Tenten yelled back, holding her ears.

The three became to move through the crowd of people. Random villagers pulled Tenten and Naruto away and began to dance with them. The blond shinobi's shouts of protest made Mayu chuckled. He was way louder than the techno-like music. Moving quickly, she pushed Naruto away from his dance partner. Once done, they located Tenten and did the same. "This is getting us nowhere!" Mayu shouted. "I don't even know where the entrance is anymore!"

"What?!" Tenten shouted.

"I SAID I DON'T KNOW WHERE-" Suddenly the music was cut off, people stopped dancing, and hushed whispers filled the room. An embarrassed flush passed on Mayu's face. She truly hated when that happened.

"Ladies and gentlemen, may I have your attention!" A voice echoed through the place, drawing everyone's attention. The colorful lights died down and were replaced with normal artificial light. The lights focused on one point. The team of ninja realized that they were in fact very close to the stage—only three rows of people away actually. "It is time for the special treat. Today is Friday, and you all know what that means…"

"FOREIGN FRIDAY! FOREIGN FRIDAY! FOREIGN FRIDAY!" The crowd's response was riotous.

"Exactly…!" The man shouted into the microphone. He tossed the voice amplifier into the air, and then caught it with his other hand. The audience ate this right up. "Here she is, ladies and gentlemen—the super mysterious stranger from the west, the girl with the cutest devious smile, the Land of Udon's one and only—give it up for our foreigner!" The crowd's applause was like the sound of thunder as the curtains pulled away.

Behind them, there stood—presumably—a girl. Her brown hair was cut short just below her neck. She wore a sleeveless black shirt, so it was easy to see her dark skin. Mayu narrowed her eyes as she continued to examine this so called foreigner. The girl had yet to turn around, but judging from the height she couldn't have been any older than she. It was when the girl finally turned around did Mayu stare in astonishment. "No… way…" she murmured. Her mumble was lost to the cheering of the customers. _"American… She's definitely from America!"_

However, Naruto did see the shocked expression on his teammate's face. Yes, he was in awe as well, having never seen someone like that, but it shouldn't be that shocking. After all, they had only been out of the village once before. _"Wait a sec…!"_ His eyes shifted from the stage to Mayu several times. _"They're skin colors were kinda the same! Could this person be a part of Mayu's clan? But I thought it was only her and some uncle…"_ Is that the reason she looked that way? The announcer gave his microphone over to the young girl and quickly left the stage.

"Konnichiwa, mina-san!" She held up her finger and thumb in a classic gun pose. "_Bang_!" she exclaimed, winking. This sent the crowd into more cheers.

"Choko-chan, I love you!" Random guy screamed in glee.

"Shot me right through the heart!" Another let out his scream as he clutch the fabric covering his left breast. He sighed dreamily before falling back.

"My, my… She's quite the popular one, isn't she?" Mayu asked. Her expression was flat as were her words.

"Well, she is kinda cute…" Tenten muttered. She, too, wore a similar expression like her fellow kunoichi.

"Is this how an idol normally gets treated…? She doesn't seem like the type to steal," Naruto commented.

The girl snapped her fingers and extended them out in a specific direction. "DJ, spin that shit!" Mayu nodded her head. Her suspicions were confirmed. What the girl just spoke was definitely English. The girl closed her eyes and opened her mouth, clutching the microphone with both hands. "We… are…" She extended her hand out to the crowd.

"FIGHTING DREAMERS!"

"_Eh_…?!" Mayu released a surprised gasp as the girl continued to sing and dance on stage. She was singing a very familiar song in English. And it couldn't be the first time either because the crowd knew some of the words as well. They sang words that she did not… in English!

Right here, right now! (Bang!)

Open fire like a bullet liner!

Right here, right now! (Burn!)

Gonna kick your butt, get the fire!

No matter how much she thought about it.

We are fighting dreamers, aim for the top

Fighting dreamers, don't worry about appearances

This girl was completely and utterly a…

Oli oli oli oh-! Just go my way!

"Narutard…!" Mayu's lips mouthed. She wrapped her arms around her body, drowning out the noise with her thoughts. _"She's… She's not from this world! She is what I was in the past. But how did she get here?! It was possible for me, but jutsu shouldn't be possible in that other world!"_ Slowly, her attention shifted back to the girl on stage. "This person… is dangerous. If she spots Naruto, then it could be the end. Hell, depending on how much a fan she is, spotting Tenten could be deadly." Mayu glanced at Naruto from the corner of her eye. He looked pumped up from the foreigner's words, even though he did not understand. Of course that would be his expression. It was his _theme song_! _"I have to get them out of here!"_ The panicked kunoichi grabbed Naruto's shoulder. "Come on, we have to go!"

"But she's right there! We can question her after she's done. This is a really cool song!" His blue eyes never left the stage. He even shot his fist into the air, shouting 'Fighting dreamers' as if he knew what it was. Hastily, Mayu pulled his hand back down and began to drag him away. "Hey, let go of me!"

"Tenten, let's go! I'll come back by myself!"

"HUH? WHAT'S THE POINT IN THAT?!"

The singing stopped, which caused the music to stop, which caused the crowd to stop as well. Mayu flinched as she imagined the horrible results that were soon to follow. No doubt Tenten had drawn everyone's attention. "Nani…?" The girl obvious knew some of the language. According to Chikara-sama, she had been in the village for months. Hopefully, though, the girl's eyes weren't that good. The spotlight shone down on the group of ninja.

"_Fuck me sideways!"_ Mayu thought.

"… It's him…" Even though she had whispered, everyone could hear. Only Mayu understood, though. "_K_… _K_…" Oh no…! No, no, no, no, no! "_Ky_… _KYAA_!!" No—it was the horrifying squeal of a fangirl. The foreigner literally jumped from the stage and into the crowd. Hands came up and transported the girl over to the ninja. Mayu's eye twitched. She was just too dangerous. A circle had formed around them, preventing escape. "You're…" Slowly, a wide grin appeared on the foreign person's face. Her brown eyes went to and from Tenten a few quick times. "NARUTO UZUMAKI!" She squealed again before launching herself at the frightful looking blond.

And then… there was chaos.

--

The foreigner rocked back and forth on the stump she was sitting on. Laughter echoed throughout the small forest. "I had no idea they were going to act like that!" She stared at the unhappy faces of the three ninja that surrounded her. "Gomen ne, Naruto-kun!" The blond frown and glared. That was an expected reaction. After all, it was he who was trampled by the people at her workplace. If it hadn't been for the two kunoichi, who had picked them up and ran into this forest, Naruto would have taken quite the beating. "But it's really an honor to meet you!" In a flash, the girl was in front of Naruto, holding his hand as if she was a knight and he was a princess. Feeling uncomfortable, the blond ninja's face turned a bluish color. Sweat slid like ran down his face. "My name is Yasmine Dalton, and I'm your biggest fan! You don't know how long I've waited to meet you!"

"Huh…?" He really did not understand a word the foreigner said to him. However, he did see adoration sparkles in her eyes. But for some reason, that freaked him out a bit.

"Your name is… Yasmine Dalton, right? And… You've been waiting a long time?" Her accent was heavy, but surely the girl understood her. She, as well as Naruto and Tenten looked at her in surprise. The foreigner stood and turned to Mayu.

"You understand me?" The girl, now known as Yasmine, folded her arms. "Well, you do look like a hybrid."

"Who are you? How did you get to this world?"

"Shouldn't I be asking you the same questions?" The girl's eyes narrowed. A small, tight frown appeared on her face. "Are you… _Mary-sue_?"

"Mary-sue…?!" Mayu was more than a little offended.

"Yes, you're with Naruto, so you're either an extra or Mary-sue. You know English pretty well, too."

"You and I are alike. We both appeared in this world."

The two girls stared at one another for a moment. Around them, there was silence. The foreigner suddenly grinned. "I'm going to call you Mary-sama!" The kunoichi held up a fist, just barely containing the urge to punch the girl.

"My _name_ is Mayu!"

"_Ah_, it even sounds the same!"

"It does not—wait, you understand me?" Mayu asked. Yasmine scoffed.

"I've been here for about six months now. I can understand quite well."

"But you can't talk it yourself?"

"Not _that_ smart."

"OI…!" Naruto shouted, fed up with being ignored. "What's going on here?!" The two girls looked at each other, and then at the red-faced blond. "How do you know what she's saying? How do you know her language?" Tenten sternly nodded her head, wanting to know as well.

"Remember when I told you my mother sent me away, Naruto?" Mayu asked. Hesitantly, the shinobi nodded. "While I was away, her language is something I had to learn." She nodded in Yasmine's direction.

"She comes from where you were sent?"

"Yeah—that's what it looks like." Mayu returned her attention to the foreign person. "But anyway, we need to know if you have anything to do with the Daimyo's things coming up missing." Yasmine looked surprise.

"Someone is still stealing things…? The villagers told me that it had stopped," she murmured, placing her thumb on her chin and her index finger under her bottom lip. "Chikara-sama sent for Konoha ninja because he's worried, right?" Yasmine closed her eyes. "Unfortunately, I don't know anything."

"Really…?" Mayu questioned. "Soon after your arrival in this land, that's when the _criminal_ acts started occurring."

"I said I don't know anything about that, _Mary_-sama." Mayu's upper lip twitched. She opened her mouth to say something more, but Yasmine interrupted. "And before you ask, onii-san has nothing to do with it either. He wouldn't do such a petty thing."

"And just who is your brother?"

The foreigner took a moment before answering. "He is not really brother, but I have grown on him like mold—his words—and so he allows me to call him such. He is a random person I met before reaching this village. Really, I saved his life, so he says he owes me." She began to walk away from the three. "If you'll excuse me, I have to get back." For the last time, she turned and smiled with a two-finger salute. "Ja ne…!" Yasmine smirked as she listened to the two ninja ask questions about what was said between herself and that girl. _"Finally, they've come. The day I've waited so long for…"_ The foreigner chuckled a bit. _"Naruto and Tenten were together, so I'm guessing this is something from the filler arcs. Even if it's not, the time is still pretty good. Even though that Mary-sue is with them."_ Yasmine covered her lips and lowered her eyelids. _"I guess that means it's the last time, eh, Yasume?"_

**Yeah, I can hardly wait. You'd better tell him to get ready.**

The foreigner nodded her head with a cheerful smile.

--

"So you seriously ended up with nothing?" Naruto did not appear to be happy. "You were gone for three hours! Three hours and you got nothing to show for it?!" Sasuke shoved his hands into his pockets. Neji, his partner for his part of the investigation, crossed his arms. He had refused to speak on the matter. "Because of you two, we don't have time to look at the crime scenes. The thief is going to be in _thirty_ _minutes_!"

"Look—it's not my fault Hyuga wanted to fight me!" The young Uchiha looked away, grumbling.

"I believe that it was you who wanted to test his skills against me." Neji narrowed his eyes, causing Sasuke to glare back at him.

"Enough…!" Mayu finally shouted. "Chikara-sama will be here soon to bring us to the painting. Right now, our job is to focus on protecting the object. If you idiots can't behave properly, then you're staying here! Got it?!" Silence was her answer. The agitated kunoichi resumed staring down at the floor.

Sasuke moved closer to his blond teammate. However, his dark eyes remained on his seemingly angry female teammate. "Yo, what's up with her?" Naruto whispered back a response.

"I think it has something to do with that foreigner we talked to," he answered. "I couldn't really understand, but she kept saying 'Mary-sama, Mary-sama' to Mayu, and Mayu didn't like it very much."

"Mayu… understood what she was saying?"

"Yeah… That place where her mom sent her—Toyko?"

"Tok-yo," Sasuke corrected.

"Yeah, that place—while there, Mayu had to learn that weird language the foreigner was talking," Naruto continued. "They must come from the same place, right?"

"Hm…"

"There's still some things we don't know about her…" The blond lowered his head.

"Some things… aren't that important."

"I… know that… Anyway, from what Mayu told us, the foreigner doesn't have a clue about anything. She didn't even know that stuff was being stolen still."

"That could very well be a lie." Sasuke looked towards Mayu again. "And I think she knows that. My guess is she's going to have one of us to try to uncover the robber's identity."

"But I've got a feeling… Mayu didn't tell us everything that was said between them. I didn't say anything because I know she must have her reasons."

Both boys stared at their teammate, who was leaning, against the wall, arms cross and eyes closed. They knew she was already trying to think of a plan. That's how she was. She did not fully give the details of her plan until the end. Both were okay with her methods. However, they wished she would be a little more open about the results before hand. Sasuke opened his mouth to get Mayu's attention, but the sliding of the door caused him to decide against it.

In stepped in Chikara and two other people—most likely servants. "It is time. I shall now show you what you are protecting!" He clapped his hands. "Come, come!" The young Uchiha involuntary twitched. Looking at this guy gave him the creeps. The Daimyo led the team down the hallway, through several—guarded—rooms until they reached the final destination. The room was dimly lit by candles that were held up by golden poles, which were lined up against the wall. Chikara turned a dial, which caused artificial spotlights to turn on. They were focused on a painting at the far side of the room. The man walked in, eyes never leaving the painting. The group followed after him also looking at the painting on the wall. "No matter what, this cannot be stolen!"

Bug-eyed, Naruto pointed a finger. "_AH_! INO?!" His hand was smacked down by Mayu as Chikara looked back at the blond, confused. He repeated the name as if he had only just heard it.

"They look similar, but that's not Ino," Sasuke stated. Naruto grumbled as he rubbed his sore hand. He gave his teammate a cheeky grin.

"I guess you would know since that's the girl you gave your first _kiss_ to!"

"Shut up, idiot!" The Uchiha flushed lightly, and then glared. Mayu grinned nervously. She couldn't help but think she had something to do with that.

"_Ah_… Anyway, I am counting her you!" Chikara gave a wink, causing the group to tense and grit their teeth. "Guards will be outside of the doors. I will come tomorrow morning, expecting great news!" The Daimyo walked backwards, stepping out of the room. "Good luck!" He then slid the doors close, leaving the team of ninja by themselves.

"Alright, let's get right down to it." Mayu pointed to the painting. "Neji, I want you there as the last line of defense. If this person really does know the Gentle Fist, then chances of us getting knocked out are high. Don't use your Byakugan until the person enters." She pointed up to a corner of the room. "Tenten, you're up there. Your weapons will serve as surprise attack." Her eyes glanced in her teammates' direction. "Naruto and a clone will be stationed near the doors. Your job is to disorientate the intruder. You can handle that, right?" Naruto gave a thumb up. "Sasuke will be in the center—do whatever you think is best, just don't kill this person."

"I know that."

"I will be opposite of Tenten up there." Mayu pointed to another corner.

"Why can't Neji use his eyes? Wouldn't it be best to know where the enemy is coming from?" Tenten asked.

"I know exactly where the enemy will come from. They will come through those doors," Mayu answered.

"What makes you so sure?" Neji questioned.

"While, we were waiting for you and Sasuke, I realized that would not have the time to go to the other places, so I asked Chikara-sama and his servants about it instead. From that, I deduced that whoever this person is… They're arrogant. They think they're invincible since they hadn't been caught yet. They even go as far as to reveal what they're going to steal and when—just like this time." She narrowed her eyes. _"Something about this seems way too familiar…"_ she thought. "Anyway, get into your positions. It's almost time."

After some time, noises were finally heard. The sounds of punches being landed, followed by the unmistakable groans and falling to the floor caused the group of ninja to instinctively become rigid. After a moment's pause, one of the doors finally slid open. Standing in the door way was a lone figure, dressed head to toe in black. Even the intruder's face was concealed by the white, glass mask. The person took a step in, which caused Naruto to react.

The clone threw a punch, but the attack was dodged. The intruder jumped up, landed on the clone's head with their hands, and then sprung forward. "Why you…!" The clone rushed forward, performing a roundhouse kick. However, the person countered with a kick of their own. Instantly, the clone popped out of existence. For a second, Naruto only stared. To destroy a shadow clone with one attack should not have been possible for an ordinary person. He glanced in Neji's direction to see his Byakugan activated. His eyebrows were furrowed. That meant he did not have an answer yet. The intruder held up a finger in Naruto's direction, beckoning him. "Stop mocking me!" The blond created a hand sign. "**Shadow Clone Jutsu**!" A total number of ten clones and Naruto surrounded the intruder.

The head of the unknown person turned side to side several times. Arms lifted into the air. The ninja could hear knuckles cracking as the burglar brought their arms back down, holding them up. _"B… Boxing stance…?" _Mayu narrowed her eyes down at the confrontation. That definitely wasn't what she was expecting. The Hokage had told them the thief used the same style as the Hyuga. However, what she was seeing looked more like a professional. Her gaze shifted to Neji. He was frowning. _"Well, at least it's not really a Hyuga."_

"Bring it on!" Naruto's shout averted her gaze back to the fight.

Two clones rushed at the person. The intruder held their ground, though. Once in range, however, a foot shot out, hitting the chest of one of the clones. This was followed by a quick jab to the stomach for the other clone. Both clones disappeared in a puff of smoke. Not giving the chance for the others to attack, the intruder dashed forward to the real Naruto. Their eyes knew where he was. Slightly panicked, Naruto jumped back a bit, ordering the rest of his clones to attack. To his shock, the person continued to sprint forward, striking out with kicks and punches. His replications did not stand a chance. _"Who is this guy?"_ Naruto gritted teeth as he created another clone. He extended his hand down as the copy got ready to aid him. _"He's going through them as if they're nothing!" _His blue eyes watched as his last attacker was destroyed by a punch to the temple. The intruder's back was facing him. Naruto used this chance to attack. "**RASENGAN**!" His back was still turned. The blond believed he had the upper hand. Unexpectedly, though, the person sharply turned, just missing the blue orb by mere centimeters. A painful palm thrust to the chin lifted Naruto off the ground. He then felt two punches to his abdomen. Then he felt one hard kick to his back.

Then he felt nothing.

His entire body was paralyzed. He was not even aware that his body hit the ground until he saw the feet of the stranger walking towards him. _"Can't… move…!"_ The blond couldn't even speak. "My body…!" He squeezed his eyes shut.

"NARUTO!"

"He's not using any chakra!" Neji's voice called out.

"That's fine with me!" Sasuke launched himself forward.

Quickly, the silent enemy moved away from the fallen blond. The young Uchiha went on the offensive, attacking with a barrage of punches. However, the enemy's agility was great and his punches were making solid hits. His attacks merely grazed the thief. But that was fine. Sasuke's plan was to back the enemy into a corner. So far, it was working. Once that happened, it would be much easier to attack and possible knock unconscious. The Hyuga had stated that chakra was not something this person used. Taijutsu was the thief's only option. So as long as he kept up with his bombardment, the intruder couldn't attack or defend. Unpredictably, his opponent flipped back in order to avoid a kick from the young Uchiha. The enemy flipped back a couple more times, getting further and further away. The criminal turned and ran away. "_Shit…!_" Sasuke hurried after his enemy. The idiot was running right to the corner. "Don't runaway, coward!"

Sasuke knitted his eyebrows together in confusion. His foe had not slowed down yet even though the wall loomed closer. The Uchiha smirked. It didn't matter. He was closing in. Sasuke reached out, intending to grab the back of the thief's shift. To his surprise, the enemy ran up the wall, and then kicked off, doing a small flip midair. "Damn it!" A punch to his temple caused his body to be racked with pain. Two follow up punches to the back made his collapse. He, too, had fallen. His body had become immobile. Sasuke breathed angrily through his nostrils. It felt like the Gentle Fist, but it wasn't. _"I shouldn't have underestimated this guy." _His eyes closed in defeat. _"Should have used my Sharingan."_

Mayu looked back and forth between her fallen comrades. "I see…" she murmured. She knew that even strong ninja like her teammates could be defeated by a strong strategist. That's what this person was—a strategist, so much like herself. The thief slowly walked away from Sasuke. _"That technique… It's not the Gentle Fist. And I'm pretty sure Neji knows that by now." _The kunoichi frowned as the person stepped over an angry blond. _"It's very similar, but it's still different. It doesn't look like the chakra network is being attacked. Neji said that chakra isn't a part of the arsenal." _She swallowed, realizing what they were dealing with. _"This person… is a Martial Artist. Speed, power, brains—this person is… amazing."_ The silent thief continued to move forward. Mayu looked toward Tenten, who was looking back at her. The younger kunoichi nodded.

Tenten quickly pulled a kunai from her holster. Flipping it in her hand, she through the weapon at the enemy—blunt end forward. The force of the hit caused the person to fly back. Not expecting an attack to come from above, the thief did not know to avoid it. Neji smirked smugly. It could not have been a person hailing from the Hyuga clan. Anyone in his family would have seen an attack such as that coming. He walked toward the enemy, hearing his two—conscious—comrades drop down from the ceiling. Suddenly, the person stood, holding the kunai. Neji's hand went up, non-verbally telling them to stop their advancement. The mask had been cracked in the middle by Tenten's deadly projectile. From that crack, more cracks spread, appearing like veins on the porcelain mask. It split in half, and then one of the halves' fell to the floor with a clang. Slowly, Neji's eyes expanded as he looked at the thief.

"I knew it," Mayu commented. "It's the foreigner."

A nervous smile tugged on the girl's face. "Seems like I've been found out." She pulled off the rest of the glass mask, and then pulled down the hood of her shirt, revealing her shoulder-length, dark brown hair. Her pale brown—almost pale—eyes shifted from Neji to Tenten to Mayu several times before she rubbed the back of her head. "Onii-san did tell me to make sure to keep my identity a secret." Mayu took a step forward.

"You mind as well give yourself up! Now that we know who you are, we can tell the Daimyo. Soon after that, your fan base will diminish."

"_Eh_…? That's not fair! I rather like the stage name—Choko-chan!" The foreigner gave a sideways victory sign. Grumbling, Mayu continued with her lecture.

"There is nothing you can do except-" She was interrupted because Neji had moved further again. On his face, he wore a look of disbelief. Both kunoichi by his side narrowed their eyes. Was that… _recognition_? It couldn't be…

"You…" He took another step. The foreigner took two steps back, chuckling nervously.

"_Ah_… I really don't want to fight a Hyuga. Those two were kinda easy because they underestimated me-" Angry shouts came behind her. Even though they know not what she said, they knew it had something to do with them because she thumbed in their direction. It was embarrassing to be defeated in such a way. "-But I know a Hyuga won't, so-"

"You're…! You don't recognize me?" The girl looked as confused as the two kunoichi behind him. "You're…"

**NO! Don't you dare say it!**

"Ya…"

**No, no, no!**

"Yaya-chan."

**SHIT!**

The foreigner's mouth parted as her eyes widen. Her right eye twitched several times before a hand came up and grabbed the right side of her head. She clenched her teeth as if something was paining her. _"What…? This is…"_ Mayu watched as girl's pupils enlarged and shrank at high speeds. _"She's…" _The kunoichi thought were cut off by the vociferous scream that erupted from the foreigner's lips. Neji called out to her again—same name, same nickname. His gaze never left her body. Yasmine was her real name, yet Neji had called her by something else. Mayu turned her attention to the screaming girl again. _"She is… just like me!"_

The Hyuga finally reached out for Yasmine, yet the sound of glass breaking diverted his attention. Something had broken through the window and landed near him. He looked down at the object. It was a small object—miniature, molded like a clay bird. Suddenly, the thing exploded! The explosion took him off his feet and slammed him against the painting behind him. His two comrades shared the same fate. Trying to push himself off the floor, Neji realized that he had temporarily lost his hearing. He tried to speak. He did not if he could or not at the moment. His eyes looked toward where the girl was. Someone… Someone was picking her up. "Yaya-chan…!" The person turned with the girl in his arms. His long hair was blond. His angry blue eyes were blue. "No… No—don't take her!" Still, he did not know if he had been loud enough to hear. The male ran and jumped through the window, leaving flames and smoke behind.

"No… Not again—Yaya-chan…"

--

He watched her rock back and forth on the bed. Tears streamed down her face. She had started to cry once the screaming stopped. Before the first tear fell, she had uttered a name—a nickname is what it sounded like. For a moment longer, he stared at her fragile form. It was the first time seeing her like this. It was strange to him. The annoyingly sweet, devious girl who had saved his life had lost her strength. And it was because of something that Hyuga said to her. Light blue eyes narrowed. He pushed himself from the wall before the room. He sat down beside the girl and wrapped his arms around her. Sighing heavily, he pulled her close. "Imouto," he whispered in her ear.

She flinched before relaxing. "Dei-sama… Something bad happened to me," she whispered. Shock showed on his face. "Yeah, I've always known this language apparently. My memories were sealed up. But tonight… they were released." Not knowing what to say, the blond remained quiet. "I was hurt in the past… and Hyuga Neji is responsible for that."

"You want me to kill him, _un_?"

"No… He's mine." Her hand reached up and clutched her tear stained cheek. The foreigner glared at the wall. "His fate belongs to me." An ominous grin slowly spread on her face. "Go—you can leave me now. Your debt has been paid."

"What if I don't want to go now?"

"You _must_ leave me. We had an agreement, didn't we?"

Frowning, the teen nodded his head. "But what about this situation? What about this village? They're going to tell, and then you will have nothing, _un_."

"I know, but I have a plan. I've always had this plan." The girl stood up, removing his arms from her shoulders. "Deidara, this is goodbye… I hope we can meet again."

"Not likely if you're going to jail, but then again… that's where I could end up, _un_." The thirteen year old and the sixteen year old grinned in agreement. "I guess I should go now." He stood up, patted her on the head, and then walked towards the door. "You better not die, _un_."

"Ne, Deidara-sama…!" The blond turned to see the younger girl with her arm outstretched. Her index finger pointed out and her thumb up. "_Bang_!"

"Yeah, _un_… Art is a bang." He returned the gesture. "_Bang_!" And then he was gone.

Yasmine sat back down the bed, frowning. She bit her bottom lip as she stared down at the floor. Now that he was gone, the last scene played in her head. _"Neji!" _She nearly snarled out. It was because of him that bad things happened to her. The foreigner planned to make him pay for all that he had done. "I… won't forgive you! I'll use everything I've learned from Granny Theresa against you. You don't won't survive."

**Now this is the Yasmine I like. Neji's going down, right?**

The foreigner nodded her head, and then smiled.

* * *

Finished March 29, 2010

I'm a little excited that this chapter is longer than what I normally dish out. But I feel bad for making you guys wait for so long. Sorry for that. Anyway, the next chapter will be the end of this part. Hopefully, the next chapter won't take forever and a month to finish.

Next time: _The Other Side of Me_

I hope to see your reviews.


	24. The Other Side of Me

The young girl stumbled, holding her stomach with one arm. The other hand gripped the bark of the tree. Tilting her head down, dinner came rushing back to her mouth. Her lips parted, no longer able to hold back her meal. After finishing, the girl wiped her bottom lip with the back of her hand. Gasping, she stood up straight, pulling her hand away from the tree. She had never been so dizzy in her life. Not even her parental unit caused her mind to spin the way it just had. The girl shuddered, feeling another wave of nausea. Luckily, she managed to stifle the feeling before it overwhelmed her.

Taking a look around, she realized instantly that she was no longer in the old, cobweb-infested attic that belonged to her parental unit. Really, she should have realized sooner. However, thoughts of regurgitating were overpowering her will to observe. The young girl seemed to be standing in some type of woodland. It was small. The canopy of the trees wasn't enough to block the sky. It was still night—the same sky she had saw before… before… Well, hell, she couldn't remember anymore. With her clean hand, she clutched her forehead, hoping it would come back to her eventually.

Sniffing, she made a face. She was definitely not at the park. No matter how beautiful they made the central park, it still could not escape the polluted scent of New York. This place was much cleaner, untouched by humans. "_Aw_ man! This had better not be one of those 'girl falling into Middle Earth' things!" The young girl crossed her arms, turning her head side to side. She sniffed again. "I knew I should not have been pulled into _Lord of the Rings_ fanfiction! Just my luck—I barely know anything about the story!"

**You could be dreaming, ya idiot. And how the hell did you come up with LotR?**

"I doubt that." She intentionally ignored the insult. "If this was a dream, I would not be thinking logically." Sighing, she scratched the back of her head. "And you know I read too much fanfiction. I've been curious about it recently—that and Harry Potter." The girl sighed heavily. "And it can't be any type of anime because I haven't been anime-nized." Her brown eyes stared in disappointment at her skin.

**I may have said this before, but… You have a weird ass sense of logic.**

Before Yasmine could retort, a high-pitched squeal interrupted. She cocked her head to the side, wondering if she had only imagined the noise. However, the scream came again, much louder than before. "Well, whoever is screaming bloody murder might be able to tell me where I am." The young girl followed the shouting. It led herself outside the forest into a clearing. A brow raised in confusion. The source of the girlish squealing was, in fact, from a young boy. The boy looked a couple years younger than her. He was in a tree at the moment. That was not the reason for his screaming, though. Below him, there was a group of older boys—four in total. They seemed to be laughing and throwing rocks at the boy in the tree.

Once again, she tilted her head to the side. "Toto, I don't think we're in Kansas anymore," she murmured. For one, all of the boys wore clothing that she was sure that people in America would never wear. Two, boys in her neighborhood would never go around wearing little dresses likes that. _"Wait a minute… I've seen this style of clothing before."_ Yasmine narrowed her eyes in thought. "Those aren't dresses—they're kimonos!" Her brown eyes grew wide in shock. A startled gasp escaped her mouth, drawing the attention of the four—what she assumed were—bullies. Upon closer inspection, she realized that the boys were definitely foreign to her. "I've been sucked into _Inuyasha_!"

**I shake my head at your fucked up logic.**

Ignoring the voice in her head, Yasmine focused on the boys. The five were shouting at her in Japanese. The four bullies seemed to be angry, while the one in the tree sounded hopeful. She blinked, and then frowned. _"Oh, this is so not fair! I can't understand a word they're saying!"_ Despite the language barrier, she walked forward. "You know, it's not nice to throw rocks at people," she told them. The four boys' expressions were perplexed. That meant that they could not understand her either. Mentally sighing, Yasmine frowned in disappointment. Of all the times _not_ to be Mary-sue, this had to happen… _"Whatever sent me here could have at least waited until I knew more than a little bit of Japanese."_

**Let me take care of this. I know a little something, something about the language.**

"That is so not fair, Yasume!" Yasmine exclaimed.

**Whatever, I'm switching now!**

The feeling of shifting minds was immediate. The young girl bowed her head for a moment before lifting it, breathing in deeply. Slowly, she opened her eyes. The boys' eyes were suspicious as well as curious. A smirk made its way onto her face. "You shouldn't go around messing with those smaller than you. It could come back and bite you in the ass!" Surprise looks were exchanged among the four, and then they turned smug looks her way.

"Says the girl who's smaller than us!" one of the boys jeered.

"Yeah, what's a girl gonna do about it?" another took a bold step forward. The girl took a step forward. A smirk played on her lips.

"Allow me to show you."

Within seconds, all four older boys were on the ground, twitching. The girl looked up at the younger boy. In his eyes was surprise and mild admiration. "I'll let you take care of the rest," she murmured. Again, the shift was felt by the two. Yasmine sighed heavily once she returned. "Great, but that still doesn't mean I know the language," she groaned.

**Suck it up.**

"Sugoi, ne!"

Yasmine's eyes returned to the younger boy. He was slowly making his way down the tree. He reached the base of the tree, and then turned to her with a giant smile. His dark eyes stared expectedly at her. Luckily, she knew a few words. Hopefully, it would be enough to find out where she was. "_Ah_… Arigato…" The young girl dipped her head at the compliment. At least, she believed it was a compliment. In the shows she watched, girls usually said that about cool guys. If possible, the boy's smile grew. He began to speak animatedly to her. A nervous smile tugged at Yasmine's lips. Honestly, she could not keep up him. He gestured a few times at the fallen boys with a slight angry face, yet the smile returned when his eyes shifted back to her. _"I… have no idea what the heck he's saying…"_ Yasmine thought as she adverted her eyes uncomfortably.

The boy must have noticed her uneasiness because he took a hold of her hand and began to lead her away. Still, he spoke as they walked away from the groaning group of bullies. Shaking her head, Yasmine planted her feet, causing the boy to look at her in confusion. "Seriously, kid, I've got no clue what you are saying!" Again, a look of confusion was given. Yasmine sighed. There was no use in repeating her statement louder. He would not understand. She pointed to herself. "Yasmine," she stated. "And you…?" She poked the boy's chest. Fortunately, the boy seemed to have a quick mind. He pointed to himself before speaking.

"Yuuji…!"

"_Ah_, Yuuji-kun…?"

"Seta Yuuji," he affirmed.

"… Uh… Watashi… wa doko desu ka?" Hopefully, she had just asked where she was. Yuuji began talking again, but the only thing she caught was village. "Okay, so there's a village near here," she muttered. "That must mean I really am in _Inuyasha_!"

_**Or**_** you've just been transported back in time to Japan!**

"_Which is where Inuyasha is!" _Yasmine replied in a 'duh' like manner. Yasume only sighed and shook her head. _"Question is… how am I going to find the main characters?"_

A sudden tugging on her hand caused the girl to return her eyes back to Yuuji. He was pointing east. He pointed several times before he began pulling her. He began to speak again as if she could understand him. However, she did enjoy being called 'Nee-san,' so it was fine. Also, in his little monologue, Yuuji had mentioned dinner. Yasmine may not have known a lot of the language, but she did know 'food,' 'dinner,' and anything associated with eating in several languages. That way, she could also eat if she ever gets lost in a foreign trouble. _That_ was her logic.

* * *

"I really, really don't want to go in there…" Yasmine murmured. Hearing shouting coming from inside was enough to drive anyone away. However, it was the sound of things breaking that caused fear to bubble up inside the girl. Apparently, this was the place where Yuuji lived with his father and mother. His parents sounded very much like their marriage was not doing too well. Still, Yuuji was all smiles as he slid open the door. He exclaimed a greeting, Yasmine assumed, and instantaneously the shouting and breaking stopped. The girl swallowed a nervous gulp. Within moments, footsteps were heard—fast paced footsteps.

Yuuji released her hand, and then proceeded to remove his wooden sandals. He did this quickly, and with good reason. The young boy was suddenly lifted in the air by a middle-aged woman. She exclaimed something Yasmine did not quite understand. Yuuji, however, returned the exclamation with joyous laughter. The home was lit, so it was much easier to see the boy and the woman. Yuuji and the woman shared an uncanny resemblance in the face. The same blue eyes, the same nose and mouth—they shared it all. The only difference in their appearances was the hair. Where Yuuji's hair was jet black, the woman's tresses were raven. Also, the woman's hair was long. The braid was hanging over her shoulder.

The laughter continued between—what she assumed was—mother and child until she became annoyed. She did not mind being ignored, but being forgotten was a different story. Yasmine cleared her throat loudly. The giggling came to an abrupt end. Two pairs of eyes turned simultaneously towards her. The woman stared in awe—most likely at the color of her skin and her facial features. They must have been strange to her eyes. She turned to her son, and then set him down. She sank to his level, looked him straight in the eye, and seemed to ask him a question. Well, her tone was questioning. She had heard the stern tone quite a few times from her parental unit. However, before the boy could speak, the woman rounded on her with angry eyes.

"Oh crap…" Yasmine groaned. The woman's eyes were the fierce eyes of a mother lion… or perhaps a weasel. There was a strange similarity to that certain animal... The woman had pulled out very—familiar looking—sharp weapons. Her brown eyes grew wide in shock. The woman's shouts had been completely drowned out. Her lips parted in utter shock. _"Yasume… Those are… Those are…"_ The girl could not even complete her thought.

Yuuji tried, in vain, to get his overzealous mother to calm down. However, she would not—could not—hear him. He mentally sighed. Once she went into protective mother mode, it was a bit hard to bring her back. He knew that if his mother would have been there, those four bullies would not still be living. Yuuji tried tugging his mother's blue kimono again. Again, he was ignored. His mother continued to question the strange hero, yet the girl seemed to have gone into a trance. He narrowed his eyes. Was that drool…?

Before he could question the behavior of his hero, his father finally walked in. He was rubbing at his stomach again. That was most likely from the blow his mother most likely gave him. Some of the villagers have called their marriage a 'strange sadistic/masochistic relationship.' Some spoke of separation. However, this was wrong. Both of his parents, he knew, loved one another very much and would never leave each other. "Yuuji, what is happening?" His father had already assessed the situation, yet was probably still confused—probably by the presence of his hero.

"I was walking home, but I was stopped by those four again. They cornered me, and then she came. She saved me, otousan!"

"_Ah_, I see…" His father put on a smile as his gaze shifted toward the foreigner. "Yet your mother seems to think she is the one who caused those bruises, ne?" The young boy nodded. His father seemed to sense his nod. "Don't worry, Yuuji, I will calm her down." Yes, of course. Father was on the only one who could.

His wife was too much at times, yet he admired her adoration of their son. She was still as hotheaded as she was in her youth. He almost could not believe she still carried around those things, especially since their village was a peaceful place. The man smiled hypocritically. Then again, he still carried around his _sakabato_—his reverse-blade sword. Slowly, he wrapped his arms around his wife. Her body tensed, then relaxed against his touch. "Misao-dono," he whispered in her ear. "You shouldn't get upset. Do you want something to happen to Yuuji's younger brother or sister?" His gently rubbed her belly. His wife was not showing as of yet, however, it did not hurt to be extra careful with his child. Misao whimpered his name, and then dropped her arms. Her body completely settled down against his. She turned and wrapped her arms around his neck. She usually became like a teenage girl in love when he acted in this manner. He was her weakness, and she was his.

"_Mm_… Sou-chan…" His wife rubbed her nose against his neck. He smiled and held her a bit tighter.

With Misao calmed down, his blue eyes returned to the unexpected guest. The young girl—a few years his son's senior—was bizarre in appearance. He had seen many bizarre people in his day, but she was by far the strangest. Her skin was the color of caramel. Her eyes were very light—hazel maybe. Her lips seemed fuller. Her nose was also different somehow, yet he could not put his finger on it. Her hair was shoulder length and straight, yet it seemed a bit thicker than other females he had come across in his journeys. For a moment, he ignored his wife, who had seemed to ignore everyone else to snuggle against him. "What is your name, foreigner?" he asked her. The girl did not respond. She had a strange faraway look in her eyes. And… Could she be drooling? _Ah_, he had been in the midst of cooking before her arrival. Perhaps, she smelled the food. He knew of someone else with the same behavior around food. His son walked over to the girl and pulled at her strange attire. She seemed to snap out of her stupor.

Yasmine blinked in surprised, and then looked down at the younger kid. He stared up at her expectedly. "Nee-chan…!" He called her, and then said a few other things she didn't understand. However, Yuuji did gesture toward his parent. Yasmine's brown eyes shifted back to the woman. She had been joined by a man. He looked a few years older than the woman. He must be the husband and father. Yuuji and he shared the same hair color and chin, as well as the same hair cut—short, just below the ears. They even had the same bangs. But enough about the males in the room…! Yasmine's gaze focused solely on the woman, who looked about ready to remove her husband's clothes.

The woman had threatened her with _kunai_. Those were weapons she had only seen in one thing and one thing only. She was not in _Inuyasha_. Oh, no—where she was much better than that. She had been transported into the ninja world—the _Naruto_ world. Before she could stop herself, Yasmine released a squeal of delight. She noticed that Yuuji had covered his ears as if in pain. The man grimaced as well. Her squeal of glee seemed to snap the woman out of her daydream because she became alert again. However, Yasmine did not care for their reactions. "You are a kunoichi!" She pointed a finger at the woman. "Oh man, this is _awesome_!" The family of three shared a look. They did not know the girl too well and they did not know what she said, yet…

That squeal she made somewhat unnerved them.

* * *

With a grunt, Yasmine lifted the bag off the ground. The bag was strapped to her back. The bag contained necessary items that would help her survive outside the village. She had been living with the Seta family for a few months now. While living with the family of three—with an addition on the way—she had learned many things. She had even learned to communicate properly. However, it was still a bit hard to speak the language. But she supposed she should count her blessings. At least she could understand what was going on now. It was time to move on. The girl turned to the three with a grin. "Well, I'm off!"

The man of the family gave his trademark smile. However, this one was quite genuine. The young girl had wormed her way into his heart. And if those tears were any indication, the foreign girl had also touched his son and wife. All of them would surely miss her presence around the house. In fact, many of the villagers would miss her peculiar antics. Admittedly, he did not want her to leave. It was a dangerous world outside of this village, after all. However, he knew for certain that the foreigner could take care of herself. Because of what Yasmine had learned from his wife, the girl had become somewhat of an advanced marksman. With her aim, there was no doubt that she would not be able to eat. In fact, that is most likely the sole reason why she had asked Misao how to throw kunai. He mentally sighed. _"Yes, I will definitely miss you, Yasmine-san-"_ The man smirked. _"-And you as well, Yasume."_ With the small training he had given her alter ego, he knew that they would be just fine. Together, those two were a dangerous force.

"Do you have medical supplies?" The foreign girl nodded her head with a smile—a trait she had picked up from her husband. "What about food? Weapons? At least three different outfits? How about-" Misao noticed the slightly annoyed look on the girl's face. Mentally, she shrugged. It didn't hurt to be careful. The woman was more than a little worried about Yasmine's wellbeing. In fact, she did not want the foreigner to leave the village at all. However, the girl was positively steadfast about her 'mission,' as she liked to call it. Since leaving with the family, all she would ever talk about was 'Konoha, Konoha, Konoha!' Misao and her family were still confused about where exactly she came from. Every time the question was brought up, Yasmine would give a vague answer that would even stump her husband. Despite this, her family had welcomed the strange girl. It took awhile, but the village also warmed up to her. And after three months, Yasmine decided that it was time for her to leave. "You just be careful, Yasmine! I better not hear about you causing trouble! I was your age once, and trouble is something I liked to cause. Don't become completely like me now, you hear?"

Yuuji watched his mother and the foreigner exchange a long hug. He knew that Yasmine was like a daughter she didn't have… yet. Yuuji eyed his mother's growing belly. The village's doctor had told him that he would have a sibling very soon. His eyes returned to Yasmine. However, it felt as though he already had a sibling. They were not related by blood, but she was as much as a sister as the baby growing inside his mother. Yuuji quickly wiped the tears from his face as Yasmine turned to face him. She squatted down to his level, patting his head on the way down. "Yuuji-kun…!" Yasmine spread her arms out, prompting him to run forward. He embraced the foreigner with a fierce hug. She squeezed him just as tightly. "Will miss you most," she whispered. Yasmine still did not fully know their language. She could understand others just fine, yet she could only speak short or incomplete sentences. Despite that, she communicated well.

The young boy pulled back slightly. "I wish you didn't have to leave," he told her. "What's so great about Konoha, anyway? What's that village got that we don't?" Yuuji's questions made Yasmine giggled. He was such a cute little boy. The way his lip poked out in a pout was simply adorable. Yasmine wiped away a few stray tears away from his face with her two thumbs.

"Always a dream of mine," she stated.

"But it's so far away! Even if you were as fast as father _used_ to be, it would still take weeks!" Yasmine noticed the twitching of the boy's father at his careless comment. "You can stay here with us!"

"Afraid not, Yuuji-kun. Dreams cannot be deferred," she remarked as she stood. She patted his head again. "At least, I think that's how the saying goes…" Her brown eyes looked towards the sky. "Well, got to go! Will write in Konoha!" Yasmine gave once last hug to the family that took her in before stepping back. She bowed in respect. "Thank you so much for taking care of me, Soujiro-sama, Misao-sama, and Yuuji-kun… Never forget you." The family of three nodded their heads. Yasmine turned her back on them, and then exited the village.

Yasmine sure how far she walked, but she did know it had been hours since she had left the village. Seta Soujiro had told her that if she traveled east and never strayed from that direction, she would eventually reach Konoha within a few weeks. Yuuji had been right. Konoha was very far from where she stood now. But it would be worth it in the end. Once in the ninja village, she would be able to meet a lot of famous people. A squeal erupted from the girl's lips. She could hardly wait! "But first things first… I need food. The sun's about to set anyway."

Up ahead of her was a clearing. Well, it wasn't exactly a _clearing_. The grass was very tall. If she had been any shorter, it would appear to be a jungle. Nonetheless, she needed to get pass the tall grass. After that, she would stop for the day and continue east tomorrow. Yasmine trudged forward, parting the grass with her hands. She wished she had taken a few hakama with her. Pants would be lovely right about now. "I bet the mosquitoes love this!" She smacked her bare leg again. However, this time was different. Yes, she heard the familiar slapping sound, and the wince that came with it, but there was another sound. It sounded like a grunt. It did not come from her.

When she heard it, Yasmine had halted her movements. She chose to lift her right foot. The grunt came again. Pursing her lips, the girl tilted her head to the side. She put her foot back down. The grunt entered her ears again. Once more, she lifted her foot. This time annoyed gibberish was heard. Yasmine blinked, and then dropped down to her knees, spreading the tall grass as she did. To her surprise, there lay a human body. It was bloody and dirty. There was no telling how long the body had been there. However, since it still made noise, this person was still alive. Despite the blood and dirt, Yasmine realized this person had long blond hair. The clothes were burnt and tattered. "How did this happen to you?" The girl brushed bloody bang from the person's face left eye. "… A guy," she murmured. Although, there were slight feminine features, Yasmine could see the developing masculine traits as well.

**Just leave him be, Yasmine. It's none of our business. **

"I can't just leave him! He'd die!" she retorted. Her fingers gripped the male's clothes, lifting him. Yasmine had made up her mind. "Besides, I'm the one who stepped on him." The male looked a bit older than she. If he survived, maybe he could help her reach Konoha faster. Someone had to know a _quicker_ route.

**Fine, but I'm not helping!**

He awoke to the feeling of liquid sliding down his throat. He almost coughed up whatever it was. However, it hurt to move. The pain from his injury on his abdomen was great. He grimaced as he reached to grab his stomach. His fingers traced the bandages. Slowly his eyes opened. _"Bandages…?"_ he thought, startled. He tried to sit up, but a hand on his shoulder and a voice stopped his efforts. His blurry sight focused on a figure. The person was now wiping his chin. He guessed that it was water. "Who… are you?" His voice was hoarse. There was a short pause, and then the person continued to wipe the water from his chin.

"Yasmine…" The person's tone was hesitant. However, he figured that it was a young girl based on the pitch. She was probably younger than him. And Yasmine…? Was that supposed to be her name? It was a strange name. "I find you hurt." What the hell? Why exactly was she talking like that? He tried to sit up again, yet he was pushed back. "Still hurt!"

"Listen, brat, I can handle myself just fine!" He pushed the girl away and sat up. He instantly regretted it. The uncomfortable feeling he had now increased to full pain. "Shit!"

"Told you," came a sarcastic retort.

He glared in her direction. Finally, the blurriness disappeared from his sight. Sitting beside him was a girl. His eyebrow scrunched together in confusion. He had never before seen a person quite like her. Sure, he had seen dark-skinned people before. The color had been starting to become common in his home village. It was the girl's face that was extremely different. "Who are you?" he repeated. The foreigner's expression turned perplexed. She then slowly repeated her name. The foreigner was a smartass. "Where am I?"

"I find you hurt," she repeated. "Felt bad, so I treat you." The older teen stared at her for a moment before his eyes shifted to the fire. Because he looked directly into the flame, she noticed the color of his eyes. They were blue. He had blond hair and blue eyes, but this was no Uzumaki Naruto. She had mentally sighed in disappointment. She really should have known she wouldn't be meeting the hero of the show so soon. Only those with Mary-Sue abilities met the main characters so quickly. "Anyway… injury won't heal quickly," Yasmine told the stranger. His eyes returned to her.

"Thanks… I guess, _un_…" the teen nodded, and then turned his head back to the fire. Yasmine's eyes expanded slightly.

_Un…?_

"I'll leave tomorrow," the teen began speaking again. "And-"

"You not going anywhere," Yasmine focused her attention back to him again. "Whoever attacked you are still after you."

"And how do you know that, _huh_?" The teen smirked. "I killed all of them with my clone! None of them could have survived, _un_!"

"Yeah… sure, but you did not kill all. While I was out getting food, I spotted a few men with swords. They were searching." The older teen grimaced. "So my guess is, you not out of woods yet." The blond snorted, and then looked away from her. "What's your name?" Yasmine asked.

"Deidara," was his short reply.

"Well, Deidara-san, there is no doubt that those guys will be attracted to the fire and assume it's you. Most likely, they attack tonight. When they get here, I take care of them since you incapacitated."

The blond, known as Deidara, snorted again. "What's a little foreign girl gonna do to the yakuza?" He hid his blue eyes behind eyelids. "We're as good as dead, _un_." Yasmine did not reply. There was no use trying to explain to him. Besides, she would probably say something wrong and end up confusing him. So a yakuza clan was after him, huh? The men she spotted did not seem like yakuza material. Also, the injury that was inflicted upon Deidara was so messy. It was not _clean_ at all. If anything, she had thought the men were a part of a lower level gang. Yakuza did not once appear in her mind not once. Yasmine mentally shrugged. It did not matter. She knew the men were amateurs and they would be taken down easily. Besides, their backs were against a Cliffside. The men couldn't hope to sneak up on them. "You mind as well leave, girl. _I'll_ take care of the rest of them, _un_."

"Do not be ridiculous, Deidara-san. Your condition… is bad. You not heal for days," Yasmine stated.

"Why do you care so much for a stranger, anyway?"

"Never said I cared, Deidara-san," she corrected. "However, you a ninja, yes?" The blond chose not to answer. "I know you are. You help me in future, I know." Again, he remained silent. "Besides, I feel kinda bad that I stepped on you several times."

"That was _you_, _un_?"

Before Yasmine respond to his outraged accusation, a sound entered her ears. It was the sound of a twig snapping. Both teens heard it and immediately tensed. Yasmine shifted closer to the blond. She held the water bottle against his lips. "Drink," she ordered. Deidara glared at her again before doing as he was told. "They closer…"

"Should have left when you had the chance, brat." After gulping down the rest of the liquid, Deidara discarded the bottle. Yasmine frowned at the sight of littering, yet said nothing. "Damn, I was careless, _un_. Well, I'm not going out without a bang."

"You say bang, but… I didn't see any explosive notes. Actually, you have nothing."

"WHAT? THEY TOOK MY CLAY?"

After his scream scared off the nearby animals, Yasmine rolled her eyes. He sure was dramatic, she thought. Deidara probably made it so the men could pinpoint their location. As if on cue, about ten men appeared in front of the two teens. Each man wielded a sword in their hands. Yasmine almost scoffed. The men minds as well have been holding sticks! If Soujiro was here, he would most likely make a sarcastic comment. However, she was not _that_ confident. Although, they were definitely untrained, she _was_ still outnumbered. The one in the middle grinned at Deidara, and then chuckled. "As if we'd leave something as dangerous as that with you, Dei-_chan_!" His mocking tone caused the blond to practically snarl. "If you had just left quietly, then this would not have happened."

"After I did was I was hired to do, I expected to be paid! Not my fault your boss is a jackass!" Deidara retorted. The leader of the ten stepped forward, angrily.

However, before he could shout out something about how cool his boss was—that was something yakuza members tended to do—Yasmine stood up, causing all eyes to focus on her. "You forgive him and walk away?" The leader's eyes trained on her. He did not speak for a moment.

"A foreigner, huh? What are you to him?"

"Healer," Yasmine answered.

"He won't need any healer once we're through with him!"

"Through with him?" she repeated, ignoring the laughter of the men. "Sorry, but I did not finish." The leader raised a curious brow, as did Deidara. "I also protector. I protect and heal Deidara-san."

As expected, boisterous laughter came forth from the yakuza members' mouth. In their eyes, she was as defenseless as a newborn. Hell, in _his_ eyes, she was defenseless. A perfect stranger, standing up to yakuza members—it was a bit of a rare sight. However, it was stupidity not bravery. This girl could not do anything. He could not do anything—not without his clay, at least. The bastards left him there to die _and_ took his weapon. Someone must have returned to the spot they had left him and discovered that he was no longer there. Their boss was a persistent son of a bitch.

Deidara watched as the girl reached into her bag. The men were not the least bit wary of her movements. Most likely, they were humoring the foreign girl. The girl, Yasmon, he thought her name was finally revealed what she pulled from her bag. Here, he was thinking it was going to be some type of defensive object. As his self-proclaimed protector, he thought she would pull out a weapon. But no—she pulled out a can of _hairspray_. Not sharp pointy things or blunt objects to throw—no, she pulled out _hairspray_. If Deidara hadn't been hurt, he would have fallen to the side. The men had no such problem, so they did fall to the side. Once they recovered, the laughter started again.

"This is no time to be fixing your _hair_!" The leader of the group even pointed a finger.

"Because of you, I step on this guy's bloody body. Because of you, I pulled into situation that did not concern me. Because of you, my journey to Konoha is delayed… But you want to know why I angry?" It sounded like a rhetorical question. "It is because of you that I missed dinner, and when I miss dinner I get cranky, and when I get cranky, people tend to get _hurt_!"

The foreigner positioned herself in front of Deidara. She then proceeded to spray the flame. Like some type of jutsu, the fire spread and attacked each of the ten men. Their shrieks of pain reached Deidara's ears. The familiar smell of burning flesh marched into his nostrils. Despite the screams and bursts of warmth, the blond smirked. "Damn…" he muttered, slightly impressed by the display. The girl dropped her can, and then leapt over the fire. His blue eyes trained on her movements. Her fists made contact several times with each man. A total of five times each she made her strikes, and then moved on to the next man. However, her attacks seemed to do little to nothing. They were still standing by the time she returned to standing in front of him in a protective manner. "Nice, but they're still-" The blond was interrupted by the body of the leader falling to the ground. His eyes widen in amazement as the rest began dropping like flies. "What did you _do_?"

She turned to him with a smile on her face. She must have been so excited that she forgot to speak properly. The girl had said something he did not understand. However, he did hear 'Ty Lee,' and 'Theresa,' whoever the heck they were. "Oh sorry… I paralyzed them." Finally she stopped speaking her native tongue. "Won't be moving for awhile." Deidara felt himself sigh in relief. The girl was more than he expected, that was for certain. That attack of hers was intriguing. He had heard of something similar, yet he was certain this girl was no Hyuga. Her eyes were quite normal. The blond smirked, and was about to say something. However, a shadow from the tree moved forward. They had hidden someone just in case! Before he could warn the foreigner, the man brought his hilt down on the girl's head.

She fell to her knees with a painful expression written on her face. Her teeth were clenched and her eyes were on the ground. Another blow to the head caused her to crumble completely. She lay there, unmoving. "You fucking coward, _un_!" Deidara glared up at the man. His expression was smug as if he had just taken down a great adversary. "Killing a little girl—you must be proud! You stupid-" The man's foot came down on his torso. A shout of immense pain was cut off by the blood he spat up.

"Shut up, ya damn brat! She shouldn't have gotten in the way!" He raised his sword, fully intending to stab the unconscious girl in the back. Deidara could not do a thing about it, though. He could only watch as the sword came down. The blond squeezed his eyes shut and waited for the inevitable sound of metal piercing skin. "Hey, where'd she go?"

Surprised, Deidara opened his eyes. Like the man said, the girl's body had disappeared from the ground. The man pointed the sword's tip at his face. His voice was panicked as he accused Deidara of having a ninja accomplice. But that was wrong. Even he had believed she was a normal girl. Laughter filled his ears, causing Deidara to look for the source. She sat on the branch of one of the surrounding trees. Something was quite creepy about her laughter, though. It sent a chill down his spine. The foreigner stopped her fit, and then smirked down at the man. Her smirk was eerie. _"Something… is different," _Deidara thought. Maybe it was the wild look in the foreign girl's eyes or maybe it was the sadistic way she licked her lips, but something about this sudden… _alteration_ put him on edge.

"You've made a bad decision, mister." The girl jumped from the branch, and landed soundlessly on the ground. Slowly, she moved and plucked the sword from a fallen man's hand. She flicked her wrist, causing the fire's reflection to glint in the shiny metal. "You shouldn't have let me out."

"_Let her out…?"_ Deidara raised a brow.

"I was trained by the best, which means you die like the rest."

Contrary to her early movements, the foreigner had become faster—_much_ faster. Her actions were just as accurate as before, yet quicker. With the sword, she had stuck each of the ten men in the head. They were dead even before the sword was pulled out. What the hell…? What had happened to the mild mannered girl? Sure, he had only known the foreigner for a short time, but he did not peg her as a _killer_. The man still standing held out his sword. His body trembled. So he had felt it too, huh? It was practically radiating off her—killer intent. That was something only a person who had had blood on them before could do. Just who was this girl?

"Too slow…!" She appeared by the scared man. She released malicious laughter as the tip of the sword plunged into the man's back. It went straight through. Judging from the position, it went through his heart as well. Chuckling, the foreigner brought up her foot and kicked the man from her weapon. Shrugging, she threw the weapon down as well. She turned to face him. Deidara was a bit ashamed to say he flinched. "We need to talk, Deidara."

"Who are you?" he bit out. The girl looked momentarily startled, but then smirked.

"Good observation…" she commented. Well, it was obvious. The person standing in front of him now spoke much better. "My name is Yasume. I am Yasmine's alter ego. I'm much more badass than her, don't you agree?" Deidara did not reply. "Anyway, this I saved your life, you are indebted to me now."

"Says who, _un_?"

"Says _me_! You don't want the rest of your honor and dignity to be thrown away, do you?" Again, the blond did not respond. "Thought so… So you can leave when you save my life. Do we have a deal?"

"Why are you so determined to have me? You like me or something, _un_?"

"No, nothing like that. But there's something about you that makes her care, so…" the alter ego trailed off. "Anyway, let's take another look at that wound."

"Just one question… for Yasmon."

"It's _Yasmine_…! She's not a fucking digimon, ya know." Ignoring her crazy comment, Deidara continued.

"Fine, Yasmine, whatever—let me talk to her." There was a pause, but then the alter ego shrugged her shoulders.

"… Yeah…? Hope you not freaked." The other one had returned.

"If I'm going to be traveling with you, I need to know something, _un_."

"Yes?"

"What do you think of art?"

"Art…? Well, I don't like… So boring. Needs more excitement." Deidara smirked.

"In that case, let me educate you on why art is a _bang_." Yasmine smiled in returned.

"Okay."

The bond had been created on that night.

* * *

"Remind me _again_ why we're not going straight to the Leaf village?" Deidara finally asked. The Land of Udon was coming closer and closer. It most certainly was not their real destination. However, going to this village was necessary. Her companion did not know the reason for their 'pit stop,' hence why he sounded so irritated. Yasmine glanced at the older teen beside her for a moment. Explaining her plan to him would be, for lack of a better word, troublesome. Besides, he would not understand.

"We can't just walk into Konoha all willy nilly!" She spoke in her first language. However, Deidara had been around her long enough to understand some of the things she said, so it was fine. She could speak freely without having to think real hard about it. She still enjoyed confusing him with her words, though. Noticing his confused look, Yasmine continued. "I mean, we'd be automatically suspicious. They would definitely do a background check. They would find out that you are a missing-nin. Can't have that now, can we?"

"Whatever, _un_…"

"I have plan, though. We make them come to us!" The young foreigner clasped her hands together. "Don't you think a good plan, onii-san? I cannot wait to meet _Konoha_ ninja!"

"What's so great about them, imouto? They're all pansies."

"_Strong_ pansies," Yasmine corrected, causing Deidara to roll his eyes.

Soon, the two teens reached the village. It was the same at any village they entered. Once the citizens noticed, it was hard to keep their eyes off them—more specifically Yasmine. It was not only because she was a stranger. It was because she was a _strange_ stranger. Yuuji had called her that on more than one occasion. She mind has well have been an _alien_ in their eyes. Ah, the joys of being black in the anime world, she thought. "So what's the plan, _un_?"

"First things first… We must _eat_!"

"You're so predictable, imouto," Deidara retorted. The blond stopped. His blue eyes peered at the sign. The business was called 'The Spot.' The creativity of the name caused Deidara to glower. Judging from the name and the music coming from inside the building, he guessed that this place was a club. Places like these were all the rage in the Stone village. They were called music outlets by elders. "We're stopping here—_hey_!" The blond noticed his companion had continued walking without him. The girl turned around with a sheepish grin. She quickly made her way back to him. "I said we're stopping here for a snack, _un_! Then we'll find a place to stay while we're here."

"Cool, maybe I can find a job, too!" The two entered the building. Deidara instantly noticed that the place was not as popular as the ones back home. There was a minimum of teenagers dancing. There were more people just sitting around. The place was supposed to be for dancing—a form of art he respected—but it had been turned into a simple _hangout_. Scoffing, Deidara headed over to the bar. He could feel Yasmine following after him. He put his hand on the wooden bar.

"_Oi_, I want dango… and bakudan," Deidara ordered for Yasmine and himself. The foreigner tugged at his hair. "What, _un_?"

"They got a stage!"

"Yeah, that's nice—and I don't care," the blond responded. He turned back to the bartender, who looked as if he was preparing their order. "Hey, you know where we could find jobs here?" The man shrugged.

"This place could also use another hand," he replied. Deidara grimaced. He would rather not work at such a boring place. "The pay wouldn't be so bad, ya know." The man must have turned and saw his expression. Deidara, however, did not look apologetic. "You're new to town, aren't you?" The blond gave a curt nod. "My name is Takahiro Kyouji." He chuckled. "In my day, kids didn't travel by themselves."

"I'm not by myself, _un_. I have travel with her." He glanced at the seat beside him. His eyes widen in alarm. "Imouto?"

"That girl's your sister? You look nothing alike! That's a foreigner if I ever saw one."

"Konnichiwa, mina-san!" Deidara swiveled around in his chair and looked toward the stage. Sure enough, Yasmine stood on stage with a microphone in her hand. Oh, he should have known. The girl sang whenever the situation presented itself—or _randomly_. Singing while walking, singing about the clouds, singing about his mouthy hands—it was all very normal to her. This place had a stage. Of course it would the first place she'd go. The neon sign indicated that today was Karaoke. Yasmine would take full advantage of that. "Here I _go_!" The foreigner had already had their attention. She sucked in a breath.

We are fighting dreamers—takami wo mezashite

Fighting Dreamers—narifuri kamawazu

Fighting Dreamers—shinjiru ga mama ni

Oli oli oli oh-! Just go my way!

Right here, right now! (Bang!)

Open fire like a bullet liner!

Right here, right now! (Burn!)

Gonna kick your butt, get the fire!

By the time Yasmine was finished, a crowd had gathered around the stage, applauding her. Deidara found himself rolling his eyes. They actually _liked_ it? Perhaps he had heard her voice far too much to appreciate it. He supposed that the song had some pretty inspiring lyrics. And it did make the people dance. The blond shrugged his shoulders. At least it wasn't Yasume. She probably would have sung something violent.

"Arigato!" Yasmine was in the midst of bowing in thanks to her audience.

"Who are you, foreigner?" a person in the crowd asked. The girl blinked, and then tilted her head. It was something she did when confused about something. Deidara had realized this some time ago. Her eyebrows knitted together as if she were thinking hard. She then smiled brightly.

"Choko… Choko-chan!" Chocolate…? She could _not_ be serious! "_Bang_!" She outstretched her hand, extending her index finger out and the thumb up. But apparently, she was completely serious. Squeals of 'So cute,' 'Sweet,' and 'Cool' filled the establishment. Deidara rolled his eyes again. Even older teens were hooting for her. She was not _that_ cute. And she totally took that 'bang' thing from him! A tap on his shoulder caused the blond to turn back around. The man had a very huge grin on his face.

"If _she_ works here, I'll give the both of you room and board—free of charge!"

"What's the catch, _un_?"

"No catch…" The man rubbed his palms together. "She's gonna make me _a lot_ of money!" Deidara could have sworn his eyes turned to money signs for a second.

"_Why do I get the feelings this is going to turn into something ridiculous…?"

* * *

_

Yasmine panted heavily. With her hands on her knees, she stared at the ground. She stayed in this position until her breathing rate returned to normal. Finally she stood straight up. Her brown eyes gazed at the abandoned temple. She was currently on the outskirts of the village. The day was almost over. The sun was about to set. At this time, she would be finishing up with wiping tables for Kyouji, the owner of _The Spot_. However, she had left work early today. Deidara had been acting strange all day. She was worried.

The young teen began to climb the stone stairway up to the temple. Now that she thought about it, he had been acting weird since yesterday night. Deidara had gotten some type of note. She had assumed that it was another love confession. The blond was popular with the ladies in this village, after all. But that's when his peculiar behavior started. He was unusually quiet. Unfortunately, Deidara had burned the note and had not spoken a word about it afterwards. Even he hadn't burned note, she could not hope to read it. Reading and writing kanji was something she could not do.

Because of his sudden coldness toward her, Yasmine had become more and more apprehensive as the day went on. So she decided to follow him—trailing far enough behind so that he would not notice her presence. That is why she had to run. But this was the place. She had seen him go in. Yasmine crouched low as she near the temple's entrance. Quietly, she moved to the side, hoping not to be seen if he was near the entrance. She peeked around the corner.

Deidara was standing in a position similar to a threatened animal. It was defensive, yet offensive at the same time. _"As expected of a ninja."_ Yasmine unconsciously nodded her head in satisfaction. Her eyes shifted to his sides. He was carrying his _clay_. Whatever his reasoning for being here involved an explosion. _"He hasn't used that stuff in awhile… not to attack, anyway."_ The young teen gaze fell beyond her blond companion. She squinted, trying to see. There were two people, standing further in the temple. One was extremely shorter than the other. Or maybe the other was sitting… She could not see their faces or their attire because of the sun's rays. Yasmine furrowed her eyebrows. Did these people call Deidara out? What could anyone possibly want with him? _"Oh wait… Deidara did tell me he used to be a bomber for hire, which is how he ended up in the mess I found him. But he hasn't been doing anything like that lately. I mean, it's been two months since then." _Her eyelids partially cover her eyes. _"Don't tell me the rest of that yakuza clan found us…"_ She could not be sure since she just got here. Yasmine moved her head slightly as if that would help her hear well.

Someone was speaking, yet they were speaking so softly that she could barely hear. Then she heard the shouting her Deidara. He was quick to anger, after all. She had been on the end of his wrath several times. Bombs were not fun to dodge at _all_! By the sound of it, Deidara was ranting how cool his artwork was and his definition of art in general. "Art is a _bang_!" He ended with his trademark phrase. Yasmine shook her head. And he called _her_ predictable.

"How annoying…" A rough voice spoke, which almost caused Yasmine to burst out with laughter. She had to cover her mouth to keep from making a noise. The soft voice said something again, but she could not make out what he said.

"You wanna fight, _un_?" She could hear the slight tremor in his voice. Something must have put him on edge. Again, Yasmine heard the soft voice. She really, really wished that whoever it was would speak up. "Don't belittle me… or my art!" The blond dung his hands into his bags. The familiar sound of his hands being squished against the clay entered her ears. Oh, he was angry.

"_I'd better stay here," _Yasmine thought. _"Or better yet, I should leave. This place must detonate and only a mushroom cloud will remain."_

However, before the young teen could hope to move, she was grabbed from behind. Her entire face was covered by someone's massive hand. She could not talk or see, but she did feel herself being picked up. Then she was released. However, before she could attempt to figure out what happened, she felt something big slithering up her body and wrap around her. Yasmine opened her eyes to discover that one of Deidara's creations—a centipede-looking thing—was squeezing her. Her eyes expanded to an almost comical size. "DEIDARA! DON'T DO IT!" she screamed. She was too afraid to translate. Her brown eyes focused on the blond, who had whipped around in surprise. "No 'katsu', no 'katsu!' I don't wanna die yet!" To her relief, Deidara dropped his arms.

"What the hell?" the blond shouted, pointing a finger.

"That was close, ne?" A voice spoke. He sounded as though he was right beside her. She turned her head and saw black… with red… clouds… The younger teen's mouth parted as her eyes slowly traveled up the person's body. What she saw was blue skin and gills. "A little later and you would have blown _her_ up."

"A genjutsu…? When the hell?"

"From the very beginning you were trapped. The moment you looked into Itachi's Sharingan eyes. Your little friend here would have taken the blast."

"Damn it, Yasmine, _un_!"

The girl was not listening, though. Unblinking, her gaze traveled beyond Deidara. Briefly, her eyes settled on the other person wearing the same attire as the blue-skinned man before turning to the man—or maybe teenager—standing on a pillar. The setting sun's rays made it so only his silhouette was visible. Even so, she could see his blazing red eyes. Like a god, he stood calm, collected… _beautiful_. For a moment, Yasmine forgot to breathe. She remembered. She remembered everything from back home. 'Un,' no wonder it sounded so familiar to her when she first heard it from Deidara. Watching that episode of _Naruto_, she could not see the rest of the members' faces, but she remembered that nasal grunt. This whole time, she had been with an Akatsuki member. She was currently in the presence of _Akatsuki_.

The squeal emitted from her was downright deafening.

The clay centipede fell from the girl's body, but she paid no mind to it. "Oh my God! Oh my God! This is hackin' for real? Oh my God!" She jumped up and down several times while pointing at the four males in the room. "Yasume, are you getting this? This whole time! This whole time!" The foreigner continued to repeat her sentences over and over again. Clearly, she was excited. Deidara could swear he saw tears and drool. He saw that the blue guy took a wary step away from Yasmine. Hell, if he hadn't already known better, then he would have done the same thing, too.

"_Eh_… Yasmine…?" He was a bit hesitant on getting her attention. Her brown eyes—they seemed to sparkle—focused on him. She clasped her hands together.

"Yes, Deidara-_sama_…!"

"Do you realize the situation you're in, _un_?" He ignored her change in honorific.

"I do!" she answered. "I'm so excited! And I just can't hide it! I'm about to lose control, and I think I like it!" Deidara almost face palmed. This was not a time to be _singing_. Yasmine coughed lightly into her fist, hopefully realizing that her lack of control was unsightly. "I know the current situation. Akatsuki wants you to join them, and you _should_!"

"What?"

Yasmine, however, only shifted her attention to the one with this so called _Sharingan_. "Itachi-sama-" She glanced back at the blue one. "Kisame-sama-" She outright ignored the other one. And how the heck did she know their names? The two looked as surprised as he felt. Well, not Itachi. That guy was as apathetic as a rock. "You are trying to enlist Deidara-sama in Akatsuki, ne?" She did not give them time to answer. "Deidara-sama is indebted to me. If you give time, he will join."

"Hey, don't go decided things on your own!" the blond shouted. "I'm not some object you can hand away, _un_!"

"Indebted to you?" the one, Kisame, asked. Yasmine nodded her head. "If it's money you want-"

"No money!" the foreigner interrupted. "Time is what I want. I love Deidara-sama… And I know I can't follow, so I ask time!" The blond could not believe what he was seeing. Yasmine had actually bowed down to a complete stranger! _And_ she was added –sama to their names! What was going through her mind?

Deidara tensed, feeling a presence behind him. He did not need to turn to see that Itachi had jumped from the pillar and walked forward. _"This guy…!"_ The blond could tell that he would not like him. In fact, hatred is something that would be attached to his memory of the man known as Itachi. There was no way he would ever acknowledge him! His focus was not on Deidara, though. His red eyes were looking at the girl. "Leave her out of this, _un_! She doesn't know what she's talking about!" Deidara told him. However, he was ignored.

"Very well," Itachi agreed after a pause. "Three months is the time limit. If he does not come to us, we will return… and kill _you_. Do you understand, little girl?" Yasmine lifted her head, looking _grateful_ at the terms of the agreement.

"I understand!"

Itachi nodded his head, and then moved pass the girl. "Kisame, Sasori—come," he ordered as he moved toward the entrance. Slowly, the three Akatsuki members departed. Deidara clenched his teeth, watching them go. He narrowed his eyes down at the foreigner, who was just now starting to stand. He could faintly hear the three males conversing. Apparently, their leader did not need him at this moment, and _that'_s why the one with the Sharingan agreed. Once he was sure the three were out of earshot, he focused all his attention on Yasmine.

"ARE YOU INSANE?" he shouted. She cowered at the volume of his voice. "SINCE WHEN AM I A BARGAINING CHIP, _UN_…?"

The girl recovered quickly. She grabbed his hands and held them close to her chest. "Deidara-sama, I had no idea I was with a future Akatsuki. If I had known, I would have treated you a little better." She spoke in her native tongue again, so he paid close attention to what she said. "Deidara-sama… It is your destiny to join this organization. Who am I to stop that from happening? Once you save my life, you are free to go."

"In the beginning, I admit that I did not like you—maybe I still don't—but you have grown on me… like mold," Deidara replied. "I don't wanna leave you, anymore, imouto."

"You so sweet!" The foreigner only latched onto him. "But you still have to go!" She let go, and then moved to leave. She danced a little jig as she went. "Little old me, befriend a member of Akatsuki! I'm so awesome!"

"Damn girl, _un_…" Deidara murmured before following after Yasmine.

She could hardly contain herself. There was a bit of a bounce in her step. Honestly, she felt like flying. Not only had she been with a member of Akatsuki for the past two months, she had gotten to meet three other member of that infamous organization. Yasmine almost squealed again at the thought. She surprised she didn't catch a nose bleed. If she were to meet more Akatsuki members, then maybe she would have what was called a _fangasm_. _"But enough fangirling for now… I only have three months!" _Yasmine curled her fingers into a fist. _"Yasume, it's time to initiate Operation A.K.N.!"_

**Fucking finally! Operation Attract Konoha Ninja is a go!**

The transition took place quite quickly. The alter ego had taken Yasmine's place. She stopped, and then set her eyes on the blond behind her. Deidara stopped as well. For a moment, the two merely stared at one another. The older teen raised his visible eyebrow. "Yasume…? Haven't seen you in awhile, _un_… What do I owe the pleasure?" The darker half of the foreigner smirked.

"Observant as always," she rejoined. Yasume walked towards the blond. She grabbed his shirt, bringing him to her eye level. "Deidara, let's fuck shit up, ne?" The older teen returned the smirk.

"I've been waiting for you to say that, _un_."

* * *

Finished May 30, 2010

I aware that I said this would be the last chapter in this part, but I kinda wanted to break this chapter a part as I continued to write. So you have just read a bit of Yasmine's past. Don't worry, I plan to reveal more stuff later on.

Next time: _Lingering Bond_

And may I just comment on the onslaught of unexpected reviews I received before now. I was amazed. So thank you! I appreciate it.

Hopefully, I will see more of your awesome reviews in the future.


	25. Lingering Bond

Hyuga Neji slowly opened his eyes. He breathed in deeply through his nose. As expected, he could not get any sleep. The rays from the morning sun had broken his meditation. His pale eyes narrowed. What meditation, he thought. He could not completely focus. His mind always drifted back to her. Neji released his breath through his mouth. _"Yaya-chan…"_ Again, an image of the foreigner girl appeared in his mind. His eyelids lowered slightly. Her appearance was quite unexpected. Yes, he had made a promise that he would find her… However, deep down he did not believe he would see her again. After all, she had disappeared like she had appeared—without explanation. Her guardian at the time—he could not have been a blood relative—had been so angry, and blamed him for her vanishing.

He briefly wondered how he could forget such an experience as he closed his eyes again. Other members of the Hyuga clan had to pull the man away from him. He had most likely repressed that memory, along with the foreigner. Neji released a sigh of regret. He had been foolish. Taking his father's death out on his friend—it was childish. Because of his harsh words, he never saw her again after that. However, this time things would be different… Surely, she would want to seek him out, right? At first it seemed as if she had forgotten him as well, but it was without a doubt she remembered once he had said her name—no, it was a nickname. His eyebrows furrowed, trying to remember her real name. However, he had only heard it once before. Now, he could not be sure.

"I'll make things right, Yaya-chan… I will," Neji murmured.

His train of thought was interrupted by fast-paced footsteps. There were two pairs of feet, and they seemed to be heading toward this room. His eyes snapped open. The pair was coming closer. Neji quickly stood. Stepping over his two sleeping comrades, he made his way towards the door. Judging from the familiar sound, one of them was Tenten. The other was most likely Ishikari Mayu, the team's captain for this mission. The Hyuga opened the door, sticking his head out. "What's going on?" The two girls were already at the door. "Is something wrong?"

"You're damn right something's wrong!" Mayu shoved a piece of paper in his face. Calmly, Neji pulled her wrist down.

"I cannot read something that is so close to my face, Mayu-san." Slightly irritated, his eyebrow twitched. His eyes scanned over the writing. "Besides, I cannot read it." The Ishikari pulled the paper away.

"… Sorry," she apologized. "I'll have to read it out loud to you guys." Mayu shoved pass him, moving into the room. Tenten followed after her. Neji scowled lightly before closing the door.

He turned to see Mayu nudging her teammates with her foot. When that did not wake the snoring blond and the _making faces_ Uchiha, she proceeded to stomp her teammates' bodies, yelling for them to wake up. Neji and Tenten shared a look. They really were a weird team… Mayu was suddenly taken down to the floor when Naruto and Sasuke tripped the girl's legs. She groaned, as well as her male teammates. "_Jeez_, Mayu…! Find _another_ way to wake us up!" The blond held his stomach.

"If you two would wake up normally, I wouldn't have to!" The kunoichi sat up and rubbed her back.

"Idiots…" Sasuke muttered, and then yawned.

Neji felt his eyebrow twitching again. He had thought Gai-sensei and Lee were bizarre, but there were much stranger people in the world. For a moment, he watched his comrades argue about sleeping habits. Then he had had enough. Neji cleared his throat loudly, drawing their attention. The fools had the gall to look offended by his interruption. "Well, what does the note say?" he asked, annoyed that the leader had forgotten about it already. A look of realization crossed Mayu's face. The kunoichi slammed the paper on the ground. Her teammates crowded around her to see. Neji doubted that they could read it.

"This is a letter that Chikara-sama received late last night after our two thieves escaped," Mayu began. "Here, I'll translate for you guys."

_Dear Chikara-sama,_

_As you probably already know by now, I am the one responsible for the missing things._

_I'm sure those Konoha ninja told you._

_I know what I have done is wrong, and I'm willingly to return everything._

_I will formally apologize for the things I have done._

_In return, there are a few things I want._

_I would like immunity from the law._

_I do not want the villagers to know._

_I want you to forget about my brother as well—he is long gone by now._

_And I want only one ninja to retrieve the stolen items—Hyuga Neji._

_If he does not come alone, I will destroy the painting as well as the things I've stolen._

_If you agree, then send Hyuga Neji to the designated spot and proper time, which I have written on the back of this paper._

_-Choko-chan_

"You have _got_ to be kidding me!" Sasuke spoke once his teammate was done reading. "Does she really think someone would agree to those terms?" Mayu closed her eyes as she folded up the letter.

"Actually…" Her expression was flat. "Chikara-sama has already accepted the demands." Noticing the WTF looks her teammates were giving her, Mayu continued. "Apparently he's a huge fan." Naruto and Sasuke returned the flat look. The kunoichi focused on the Hyuga. "She specifically asked for you, Neji, so start talking! How do you know her?" For a moment, he did not answer. "Obviously, you two had some type of relationship in the past, right? I didn't ask you about this last night because of what happened, but now you're not getting away. Tell me what that foreigner is to you!"

Honestly, Mayu was more than a little curious. That girl, Yasmine, was definitely from another time and world. It shouldn't have been possible for her to come here—let alone once before. She was interested in how the foreigner had made it. For herself, it had been her mother that performed a jutsu to send her away. Because that jutsu had begun to fade, she had returned. However, Yasmine could not have gotten here the same way, right? Besides that, how old was she when she first came? Mayu would not have known if she had been in the Leaf village. After all, she was never allowed to go into town when she was younger. So hearing something—_anything_ from the Hyuga could help her figure out how who the foreigner really was.

"It is none of your business. This matter is between her and me." Neji turned his head away. Naruto and Sasuke seriously had to restrain their teammate from strangling him. Already used to Neji's behavior, Tenten only shook her head. Slowly, the Hyuga turned his head back. "However, I suppose you need to know as team leader…" Narrowing his eyes, Neji continued. "You are correct… We did have a relationship. We were friends. I first saw her when I was four. I believed her to be the same age." Images from his childhood entered his mind. The laughter of two children caused the Hyuga to frown. "Long story short… I spoke harsh words to her and she left. I did not see her again."

"Why did you say mean things to her?" Naruto asked.

"… I'd rather not say." He received glares for his statement. "She did nothing wrong, though. I was… angry, but not with her."

"Did she know that?" Mayu questioned. Neji shook his head. For a moment, none of the ninja spoke. The captain released a heavy sigh. "You are supposed to meet her in fifteen minutes down by the river." Her comrades all gave her startled looks. The kunoichi ignored them and stood up. "This girl wants to see you. She probably wants to resolve the strife between you two. You should leave now, Neji."

"Y-Yes…" Hesitantly, the Hyuga nodded his head. He moved to the door. Without looking back, he took his leave.

Once he was gone, Sasuke opened his mouth. "Is this okay, Mayu?" he inquired. "I don't trust this girl. Why would she _only_ want Neji to go? And how the hell do we know her brother really is gone? It could be an ambush. It doesn't make sense to me. I find it hard to believe she'll just hand over the crap she stole and make an apology." Frowning, the kunoichi crossed her arms.

"You're right, Sasuke." She tilted her head down. "That girl probably has no intention to apologize to _Neji_. In fact, I'm willing to bet that she will attack him."

"And you just sent him alone?" Tenten stood up, looking angry. "That girl is no normal person. Her abilities could be on par with a ninja!"

"Yup," Mayu shrugged her shoulder, nonchalantly. "She's just like me. Gaining lost memories from childhood that hurt her—yeah, she's just like us, Sasuke." The Uchiha raised a curious brow, not understanding her rationale. "More than likely… Neji is this foreigner's Itachi."

Sasuke immediately narrowed his eyes at the mention of his older brother. So that's the type of relationship the foreigner and Hyuga were in, huh? Then Mayu was right. The foreigner would definitely attack him. Of course, what Neji had done to her could not compare to what Uchiha Itachi had done to himself and Mayu. However, it must have been pretty bad if Neji was indeed this girl's Itachi. His dark eyes shifted back to his female teammate. She stared back with an intense gaze. Her stare caused him to rethink about the situation. Why did she compare Neji to Itachi in the first place? He turned his head, breaking the eye contact. Her focus on him made him slightly uncomfortable, and almost guilty. "So what are we going to do? Leave them be?" he asked.

Mayu smirked. "Don't get it twisted. We're still going to follow," she answered. "Neji's no fool, but I can't risk him getting gravely injured. But I don't plan to interfere either—none of us will engage, got it? Like Neji said, this matter _is_ between the two of them." Her teammates nodded in understanding. Tenten frowned, but nodded her head as well. Mayu turned her back on the three. "You have three minutes to get ready, and then we're going," she told them. She received confirmation from the three ninja. Then she heard their footsteps leave the room.

Once she was alone, the kunoichi narrowed her eyes. She did not tell them everything she believed that girl would do. Attack him…? Yeah right—that scream told her that much. The foreigner planned to _kill_ Hyuga Neji. Mayu pursed her lips as she continued to stare out of the window. To have a fan of the show try to kill one of the main side characters—it was unheard of. _"Whatever it was he said to her… It must have been traumatic to her."_ Mayu closed her eyes. Neji's relationship with the girl was parallel to Sasuke's relationship with Itachi's. Hopefully, things would not turn out badly this time around. If Sasuke saw what _could_ happen between the foreigner and the Hyuga, maybe he would not be so adamant about his fight with Itachi. It was selfish to use this to help her own teammate, but she needed to make him see that light as well as Itachi. Whatever the outcome between Neji and Yasmine was, it would influence Sasuke.

She was sure of it.

* * *

"I can_not_ believe this!" Again, Tenten was told to shut up by the younger kunoichi. The brown-eyed girl glared in return. The reason for her temper was because of her teammate, Hyuga Neji. She had been on a team with him for the longest time, so it was safe to say she knew the genius shinobi pretty well. She had been with him through a lot, along with the rest of the team. She had seen him smug, angry, sarcastic, slightly amused, and moody. She had seen all of his expressions, she believed. To her, he had become predictable. She knew how he would react to certain things. However, what she was seeing now is something she had never seen on her teammate's face. A smile—Hyuga friggin Neji was _smiling_! "You _shush_! I still can't believe what I'm seeing!"

"That's what she said!"

Naruto was whacked over the head by Sasuke and told to be quiet. "Tenten, please keep your voice down! Do you want us to be discovered?" Mayu practically hissed. The older kunoichi huffed lightly before returning her eyes back to her teammate. Sighing, Mayu did the same. The four were currently hiding amongst the leaves. Naruto and Sasuke were on a branch lower than Mayu and Tenten. However, the four could see Neji quite clearly. He stood near the river's edge. Every so often, his head would shift left and right, searching for the foreigner. And he was indeed smiling. Albeit, the smile was relatively miniscule, it was still weird. The genin of Team 7 did not know Neji very well, but they were sure smiling isn't something he did frequently. Tenten's disbelief was further indication. _"I know I said that Neji was no fool, but he doesn't really expect to kiss and make up with this girl, does he?"_ Despite being a genius, the Hyuga was not thinking clearly about the situation. He didn't even bother to turn on his Byakugan—not _once_. However, it was in their favor either way. Right now, Neji's eyesight range was limited. He would not be able to detect them at this distance, Byakugan or no. At least, that's what the kunoichi had hoped. Mayu could practically feel the sweat drop on the back of her head. Heads would roll if the Hyuga prodigy found out about their spying. The kunoichi focused on Neji's small smile. _"Just how close were they…?"_

She glanced in Tenten's direction for a moment. It was brief because irritation practically radiated off the older kunoichi. Mayu could seriously hear the grinding of the girl's teeth. A nervous smile tugged at her lips. She really hoped Tenten could control whatever emotions she was feeling at the moment. Interference would not go over too well. Admittedly, Mayu had read some NejixTenten fan fiction in the past. The show or the manga did not show the two to have any feelings towards one another, so she did not think anything of it. However, Tenten's narrowed eyes told her that there were _some_ feelings involved—at least for Tenten.

"She's here," Sasuke stated, causing both kunoichi to shift their attention. The young Uchiha had been right. The foreigner was in the process of walking toward Neji, who had already noticed her. On her back, she carried a very big bag. Hopefully, everything was there. Mayu frowned a bit at the girl's face. Her expression was unreadable. She stopped a few yards away from Neji. Now, only her back was visible to the spectators. The foreigner removed the bag from her back and gently set it on the ground.

"No matter what happens, we can't get involved," Mayu ordered.

"Still, I'm worried… That girl took down the number one rookie of this year in _seconds_…" Tenten bit her lip. "We don't know what she could do once she gets serious." A vein bulged on Sasuke's forehead. "I thought Naruto was strong, too, but he was practically brushed aside." The blond shinobi's eye twitched.

"Don't worry, Tenten," Mayu replied. "Hyuga Neji is on a different level than them, and he's more experienced. He won't underestimate her like my idiotic teammates."

"_Who's_ side are you on, cocoon girl?" Both shinobi gave hushed shouts.

"Just keep watch, you retards!"

* * *

Neji eyed the bag for a moment before returning his gaze to the foreigner. Seeing her in the light of day was much different from seeing her at night. The girl no longer wore those dark clothes. Her short hair was pulled back into a low ponytail. Her eyes appeared almost hazel in the light. She wore a light blue, loose long sleeved shirt and shorts to match. On her hands were fingerless black gloves. On her feet, there was something that looked similar to shoes. However, they covered her feet completely. Also, something white—some type of clothing—covered her ankle. The Hyuga opened his mouth to ask, but then thought better of it. It did not matter at this point in time.

He took a step forward. "Is that truly everything you have taken since your arrival in this village?" For a moment, the foreigner did not respond. She turned her head away as if contemplating something. He noticed the way her eyes narrowed at the bag. Finally, she nodded her head stiffly. An awkward silence followed. He supposed that she did not know how to react around him. They had been separated for years, after all. In all truthfulness, Neji was a bit wary on how to behave around her as well. "You… wanted to see me, so I assume you remember our past as well?" Neji noticed the slight flinch her body made. Slowly, she nodded her head. The young Hyuga almost sighed in relief. He moved forward again, coming to a stop right in front of her. "So then… Yaya-chan-"

"So then… Neji Meji…" The foreigner looked him in the eye. She was only slightly shorter than he.

This time, Neji could not hold back the sigh of relief. His body reacted on its own. His hand had grabbed her right wrist and pulled her towards him. He did not even think about his movements. He pulled her into a hug. Neji did not register the sound of an outraged shout. He was much too focused on the girl in his arms. He squeezed her lightly, yet her arms remained limp. However, he did not mind this. To have his friend back here—he was pleased for lack of a better word. "I'm sorry…" he whispered. One hand reached up and pressed her head against him. Her forehead was against his cheek now. It was intimate contact, yet it was quite familiar. Hugs like this were not uncommon for them in the past. "I'm sorry," he repeated. "Those things I said—I never-"

To his astonishment, the foreigner pushed him away. Fingers curled into a fist, she punched him several places on his arm—three times in total. Neji slid back, eyes wide in shock. He had felt his right arm go flaccid. He could not feel anything either. He turned his gaze back to the foreigner. Her expression had hardened. "My name is _Yasmine_!" She brought her other hand. It, too, was curled into a fist. Her stance was the same as it was yesterday night. "And these are your last words, _Neji Hyuga_!" His mouth parted in confusion. She had intended to fight him? But why…?

The girl, Yasmine—it didn't ring any bells—ran at him, trying to strike him again. However, Neji was faster and dodged her punches almost easily. The Hyuga narrowed his eyes as he dodged another fist. Yasmine was aiming for very precise points on his body. He smacked her wrist, evading another blow. It was no wonder her style of fighting was reported as the Hyuga's style. The attacks were very similar. However, it was far from gentle. Her strikes hurt… _a lot_.

Not only that, but she had agility on her side. Neji jumped back, pushing chakra out of his feet to aid him with putting distance between them. The two were put in a standstill. The Hyuga was almost amazed by her abilities. It had been nearly eight years, however, he hadn't expected her to train. She, herself, had told him she did not want the life of a ninja. Then again, she had also told him that she wasn't weak. The girl in front of him was by no means weak. He was sure that normal men would fall prey to her physical strength. Yasmine shifted her foot back, signaling that she was about to launch into another attack. "Why are you doing this?" Neji's shout, as he expected, caused the foreigner to halt her movements. She stared at him, her expression getting angrier by the second.

"Obviously you don't remember quite as well as you _think_!" Yasmine reached into her sleeves and pulled Misao's old kunai from their placement holders. In fact, this special shirt had belonged to the ex-kunoichi. All of her kunai were kept in her sleeves and not a weapon's pouch. It was quite sneaky. Judging from Neji's face, he had not been expecting the weapons to come flying at him. Yet he would dodge them. He was Neji Hyuga, after all—a genius. The eight kunai were distractions. She followed behind their path. Her brown eyes saw him dodged the last kunai. However, he was in a position in which he could not dodge or block her next attack. Yasmine shifted her weight to her left leg. She spun around, lifting her right. The heel of her black _Chuck Taylor All-Stars _shoes connected with his face. She wasn't sure where she had hit him.

It wasn't wise to stop her attack. However, she had done something not many could do. Yasmine was determined to take him down, but she knew Neji was no amateur. Actually hitting him was a feat in itself. Blood dripped from his nose. Shocked, he reached up to wipe away the warm liquid. Only one of his arms was working at the moment. She knew that she had to weaken him before attempting to fight him. It wasn't like he was Sesshomaru—badass even without two arms. Yasmine narrowed her eyes at the boy. _"He is only human,"_ she thought.

He could not believe it. Yasmine seriously wanted to cause him harm. She had changed more than he thought. The girl who had admired and respected him before was gone. And why wouldn't she be? Neji used his functional arm to wipe his upper lip. It seemed like luck shined down on him. His nose hadn't been broken. However, her strength was something to become cautious of. In addition, her hidden weapons could be a problem, especially since he could not successfully use his rotation technique.

His gaze never wavered from the girl. He observed her entire body. The muscles on her legs told him that she ran a lot, which meant her stamina could be quite adequate. The rise and fall of her chest told him that she had taken breathing exercises. There were not many who trained their lungs, but this girl had. Even the strongest of ninja did not do it. They were foolish, of course. He knew that breathing was easily the most important thing any fighter should be able to do. He, himself, did breathing practices. The more he examined her, the more she looked like some type of professional. Her legs were wide—left leg forward and right leg back. Her torso was bent at an angle, and her hands were up—one to attack and one to defend if need be. There were not many openings. The way she positioned her body told him that she was light on her feet—not extremely fast, just light. This led him to believe that she had yet to show what else she could do with her body.

Neji shifted his gaze back up to her face. Obviously she was hurt and irate—a deadly combination for either or both of them. He raised a brow as he continued watch her. He did not understand why she was so angered. What happened had happened when they were mere children. She should not be mulling over something a child may have said to her. It was years ago. Neji saw her hands clench and unclench as she continued to glare his way. His eyes narrowed in realization. Of course…! To her, it was not years ago. To the foreigner, it had all happened last night. Forgotten memories had rushed back to her—_harsh_ forgotten memories. More than likely, with a mind of a child, she was hell bent on revenge. Her emotions were causing her _not_ to think clearly. She was being selfish. To think she was the only one affected by what happened was just selfish of her. The more Neji thought about it, the more upset he became. What right did she have to attack him now when he did not do anything tremendously wrong? "_You're_ the one who left!" Neji bit out before he could stop himself. A flash of incredulity crossed her face before her rage returned full force.

"What the hell did you just say?" Yasmine shouted.

The Hyuga mentally kicked himself. Hell, if the subject was here, he mind as well finish what he started. "You left," he stated. Her nostrils flared, but Neji continued. "If you had only remained, then things wouldn't have turned out the way they did! Do you think I do not feel guilty? Do you believe you are the only one hurt? There is more than one perspective to our past!" The foreigner bowed her head, yet he could see the gnashing of her teeth. He noticed her foot shift, and then she charged at him, tearing through the grass like a blade.

Grimacing, he blocked a punch, only to dodge a kick the next instant. Her speed had increased a bit, but not to the point where he could not evade. Neji twisted and turned, wincing each time he was grazed. Her anger had spiked thanks to his comments. Her barrage was quickly becoming an annoyance. When the chance came, the Hyuga grabbed the girl's wrist and bent it back, causing enough pain to halt her attack. Yasmine yelled out, falling to her knees. The girl had become immobile. Pain was probably something she was not accustomed to. That is what Neji thought until her quick movement moved him wrong. Since his usable arm was preoccupied, he could not stop her punch to his abdomen. The sheer strength behind the punch was enough to cause disorientation. In addition to that, he had released her. The foreigner used his blurred vision to sweep him off his feet, using her leg. Neji found himself with his back on the ground and a kunai at his throat.

Both young teenagers panted heavily. From her position above the Hyuga, Yasmine gripped the ninja weapon so that there was no chance of him knocking it away. Then again, she did have his working arm currently pinned to the ground by her right hand. He was a Hyuga. Physically, he was weaker. She could overpower him any day, and judging from his expression, he now knew this fact as well. "How _dare_ you…" Yasmine began, pressing the flat part of the kunai against the bottom of his chin. The Hyuga winced and tilted his head up. However, the sharp point was still at his Adam's apple. Neji's breathing hitched as the cold metal pressed against his skin. "How dare you try to turn this around on _me_!" She was aware of her snarl, but she was livid. His harmful words echoed through her head.

_Don't ever come here again! I hate you…_

An unfamiliar stinging was felt at the outer corners of her eyes. However, she ignored that in favor of glaring at the boy underneath her. Arrogance, she wanted to hiss. In his mind, he probably believed she was in the wrong for attempting to take him down. Well, she had _every_ right. What pissed her off was the fact that he was making light of the situation. It was like he did not know of her intention. Well, she'd be happy to enlighten him. However, before she could attempt to make a move, the Hyuga triggered his advanced bloodline. Yasmine could not stop the gasp nor could she stop herself from reeling back in surprise. Seeing the Byakugan up close and personal like this was intimidating. It was a bit more frightening than she remembered on the show.

She was startled by his bloodline, which is what he had intended. The girl was stronger physically, yet her grip had loosened, allowing his escape. Neji swiftly wretched his arm free, and then rolled over so that he was on top. The kunai had pierced his flesh. The young Hyuga grimaced, feeling the stinging of the red line under his chin, yet he did not let up. The kunai was discarded, hopefully on the other side of the river. "Calm down and listen to me!" The foreigner, however, thrashed underneath him, refusing to give in. Neji suddenly found himself on his back again with her on top. He did not stay that way for long.

The two tossed and turned, both trying to gain the upper hand. In the end, it was she. Though, it wasn't for very long. Neji pushed his body up, propelling Yasmine up and over him. With a yelp, she landed on the ground opposite of him. Reacting quickly, Neji stood and moved away. However, she was standing now as well. She ran at him. Clenching his teeth, Neji realized that he would have to stop defending. Nothing else would get through to her. She was a fighter. It was time for him to start treating her like it. Neji dropped down into the standard Hyuga stance. Unfortunately, he could not use his limp arm, yet he could still attempt his clan's movements. Once in range, he shifted his back foot. Noticing his stance, Yasmine halted, but it was too late. She was in range. "**Eight Trigrams: Sixty-Four Palms**!" His index and middle finger connected with the foreigner's torso. She lurched back and continued in this manner as he assumed his assault. Without both of his arms functioning, the most he could achieve was thirty-two strikes.

However, the result was still the same. Yasmine was forced away from him. Her body rolled, coming to a stop meters away from him. She lied on her stomach, unmoving. Although she did not use chakra, she would have difficulty moving. He needed that time, hopefully to explain. Unfortunately, he noticed her fingers twitching. She still had some fight left in her. Neji almost smirked in spite of the situation. When they were children, she gave up pretty quickly once he used his Gentle Fist. Instead of getting up, though, she began to laugh. First it was quiet chuckles, which transformed into giggles, and then into full blown out laughter. Her arm slowly slid towards her, which pointed her elbow upward. The other did the same. Just as slowly, she pushed herself up. She stood up straight with her head bowed.

"You made a mistake, Hyuga." Neji narrowed his eyes. Her voice seemed to have changed a bit. It sounded rougher—_harsher_. A chill went up his spine as he continued to listen to her laugh. This was not cheerful laughter. It sounded akin to the laughter Kidomaru did in his fight against himself and Hinata. Something sadistic like this should not have come from Yasmine. His eyes shifted to the girl's chest. His mouth dropped open in surprise. Her heartbeat had _changed_. Neji had studied the human body in great detail when his Byakugan first surfaced. He came to the conclusion that all people's heartbeat was different. It did not matter if they were tired, angry, relaxed, or gleeful—everyone had a unique rhythm. The girl's head snapped up, revealing aggressive narrowed eyes. It wasn't a glare, though. It was as if her eyes were always like that. However, he knew that it was not the case. Yasmine's eyes were normally wide with pure nativity. These eyes were the experienced eyes of a… killer. "To have this chance, I'm glad she hit her head."

"Just… who are you?" Neji questioned. A brief frown graced her face, and then the smirk returned.

"My, my… There are a lot of observant people in the world, ne?" She closed her eyes for a moment before opening them again. "My name is Yasume, and I am a security system."

**Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! Neji's mine!**

"_Not anymore—he's mine now!"_

Yasume watched the Hyuga like a hawk, watching its next meal. She chuckled lightly at his expression. He, most likely, was trying to figure out what the hell was going on. Multiple personalities weren't a common thing, after all. And he would soon find out that multiple fighting styles were also thrown into the mix. Thanks to Soujiro-sensei, she learned quite a bit. Yet it was his wife that had taken Yasmine under her wing. What she knew was different from what the alter ego knew. And Hyuga Neji was about to find that out quickly. Yasume shot forward.

Neji reared his head back, not expecting her sudden increase in speed. Within seconds, she had closed the distance between them. Their eyes locked, and in the next instant her leg came up in a flurry of kicks. Her foot attacked his body similar to the way he used Gentle Fist techniques—quick, precise, and excruciating. Squeezing his eyes shut, he coughed up blood. Once more he found himself flat on his back. Neji panted heavily. Never before had he felt so much pain. Well, since his fight with Akimichi Chouji. His whole body was in pain thanks to those strikes. These conditions were not—wait a minute… His whole body was in pain, which meant he could feel his arm. The feeling had come back! However, Neji did not have time to celebrate. Yasume's foot stomped mercilessly on his chest.

"How does it feel, Hyuga?" Her foot twisted, causing Neji to grunt at the friction. This girl—this alternate personality was ruthless. Her fierce brown eyes bore into his. Neji involuntarily froze under her piercing gaze. "How does it feel to have your heart stepped on like this, _huh_? Well, this is _nothing_ compared to what _you_ did to her, but it's a start." Despite her brutality, she was very protective of her other half. Neji narrowed his eyes. Still, he did not know this girl. Therefore, he felt nothing towards her. It was _Yasmine_ he wanted, not her _defense mechanism_.

She saw the smirk, yet it was too late. Neji had moved quickly and grasped her ankle. "Shit…!" He pushed her thigh, holding onto her ankle with his now fully operating arm. The alternate ego fell to the ground as the Hyuga moved to stand. They both glared at one another from their positions. As if she didn't already hate his guts… Yasume shifted her gaze to his arms. He was able to use both of them now. That meant he was more dangerous. Better get him before he gets any bright ideas, she thought. She breathed in deeply before racing toward the Hyuga. Yasume impelled her feet from the ground. Performing a small twist in the air, she moved closer to Neji, swinging her foot back. The sole of her shoe smashed into the genius—at least that is what she believed happen until he smirked again. Yasume grimaced, feeling her foot being held at bay by an invisible barrier. Neji spread his arms out and widen his stance.

"**Palm Rotation**!"

Because of his rapid spinning and the chakra had had emitted from his body, Yasume was throw a couple of meters away from the Hyuga. Her back slid against the dirt and grass, only coming to a halt when she dug her fingers into the ground. Slowly she sat up, gritting her teeth. Ignoring the pain, she stood up and went at him again. The little bugger was fast, but she was faster thanks to Soujiro. Hopefully, that old samurai taught her something useful against a ninja.

"**Shukuchi**!" The foreigner suddenly gained a boost of speed, causing Neji to back up in surprise. "Step One!" In fact, the only thing he could see was her footsteps, ripping through the grass in front of him and the dirt cloud which had been kicked up. Neji moved to perform another rotation, yet she was faster somehow. The only thing he could do was bring both arms up to block her kick to his chest. The young genius stumbled back by the force behind the kick. "Step Two!" She disappeared from his front side and reappeared in the air, diagonal to him. Instinctively, he moved to the left to block her attack. However, his palm was not hit by anything. It was then he felt the kick to his shoulder, and then in other areas of his body.

"_Impossible…!"_ Neji grunted as he fell to the ground. It had seemed like the foreigner had attacked from _all_ sides. Forcing his body to stand, his head moved to and fro, trying to locate the alter ego. He narrowed his eyes. Her strength was her speed, yet that did not seem to be the case with Yasmine. His old friend relied on brute strength and acrobatics. _"It's like fighting two people."_ Neji quickly moved to stand. Yasume was a few feet in front of him now.

"Step Three!" Yasume completely disappeared from his vision.

"_Here it comes!"_ he thought. Neji moved his arm forward. His other arm stretched behind him. This time, he would evade each hit. For a moment, it was as if time had stopped as he prepared his technique. Now, he could see her, and she was about to run straight into his reach. "**Eight Trigrams: One Hundred Twenty-Eight Palms**!"

* * *

To onlookers, the two fighters' movements were nothing but a blur. "No way…" Tenten could not keep her mouth completely closed. "She is as fast as Neji!" The younger kunoichi beside her nodded her head in agreement. She swallowed hard as she continued to watch the quick-paced movements. She briefly wondered who was faster—Lee, Neji, or the foreigner. Hell, right now she couldn't even tell who was winning. And what was up with the girl's sudden shift in fighting style. She was using her legs more than her fists. It was a definite change from last night and the beginning of their fight. From where she was, it had been impossible to hear the words exchanged between the two.

Mayu briefly shifted her gaze to her two teammates. Their eyes were glued to the fight as well. "Sasuke, give me something!" It took a moment before the Uchiha registered that she had told him something. Stiffly, her teammate nodded. "Who's winning?" she asked. With the Sharingan, Mayu knew that movements were slowed down in his eyes. Hopefully, it was slowed down enough so that he could tell everyone else what was going on. Sasuke actually scoffed.

"Winning…?" he murmured. "None of her kicks are getting through, and Hyuga is only blocking and swatting her legs."

"You can _see_?" Naruto's tone was incredulous.

"Of course I can, idiot. These eyes can see any movement slowed." His blond teammate scoffed and crossed his arms. What his teammates did not see was the sweat that formed above his brow. _"My Sharingan can only do so much…" _he thought. The two were probably only _slightly_ slower than what he had seen Rock Lee accomplish in the preliminary rounds of the chuunin exam. The two were fighting so intensely. Why…?

_Revenge_

The word burned in his mind like wild fire. It was something he, too, wanted second to anything. The girl wanted to cause Hyuga immense pain, perhaps even kill him. He and she were the same, after all. Both were determined to succeed in their retribution. The more he watched, the more intrigued he was as to what happened in their past. The young Uchiha clicked his tongue. Whatever it was, it could not have been as bad as his past. However, Sasuke could not shake the feeling that this fight was important somehow.

It was kinda pissing him off.

* * *

All around him, there were legs moving in to strike. Of course because of his technique, he could see the closest leg before it reached him. He was moving just as fast—or maybe faster—than her at the moment. What Neji could not understand was why he could not see her entire body. If he could, he would be able to knock her down and end this routine. Again, the young Hyuga smacked a leg away, and then elbowed another away from him. It was so much like the spiders that had rained down on him in the past. _"Wait…"_ His eyes narrowed. He was beginning to see flashes of her body in random areas—no, there was a _pattern_. The alter ego's speed must have declined somewhat. _"If that's the case, then…"_ Neji swayed back, and then turned. _"There…!"_

Yasume gasped, not expecting for her ankle to be grabbed while she was in mid kick. She had slowed down during their quick-paced fight, but she didn't think it would be relevant. The Hyuga had caught her, though. Quickly, she twisted her body, swinging her free leg. She had hoped it would knock him away, but it didn't. He had grabbed her other ankle as well. The Hyuga then slammed her on her stomach. A strangled wheeze escaped her. For a moment, she couldn't even breathe! "He knocked the wind outta me!" Yasume groaned her right arm was twisted behind her back. The Hyuga also moved both of her legs bent over her back. He had pinned her down to the ground with no hope of escaping. Yasume squeezed her eyes shut, not only because of the pain her current position was causing, but also because it was embarrassing. Stupid pansy Hyuga had got her down _and_ immobile. "You don't want this, Hyuga!" Still, she struggled to break free from him. "This ain't what you want!"

Neji twisted her arm a bit further, causing the foreigner to scream out. "You are correct. I do not want to settle this manner with anyone other than _Yasmine_." A string of curses exited her mouth. The young prodigy closed his eyes and mentally sighed. With a yank, he succeeded in halting her words. "Believe me, _Yasume_, I do not want you! Change places with her _now_!"

"Oh and why should I, _huh_?" she hissed. "So you can tell her how much you hate her _again_?" Neji pursed his lips, not replying. The alter ego chuckled mirthlessly. "I guess I should thank you, though. You are the reason for my existence… and the reason for her uncle's death!"

"What?" he asked.

"Of course you wouldn't know, now would you?" Again, the alter ego chuckled. She yelled out when her arm was twisted again.

"Just let me speak with _Yaya-chan_!"

The girl's head suddenly dropped, and her entire body relaxed. It was only seconds later that it tensed again. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw her free arm swing. In his present position, he could not hope to dodge or block her oncoming fist. The side of her curled hand hit his jaw with a resound cracking noise—at least to his ears. Neji swiftly rolled away from the foreigner. He stood, waiting for her to do the same. The Hyuga lightly rubbed his jawbone. The pain was lingering, which meant the girl in front of him was Yasmine. She turned to face him. "Don't call me that!" she said.

Again, she ran at him with her arm pulled back. Neji mentally sighed. This was not getting either of them anywhere. He needed to do something that would make her stop. The young prodigy shifted his foot back and prepared to block anything she dished out. However, it came as a surprise when the foreigner suddenly tripped over her own foot. Judging from the distance, she could crash land, chin first, right at his feet. This was expected, yet that is not what happened. Instead of her chin, it was her hand. She had shot it forward, successfully performing a hand stand in front of him.

The foreigner foreigner wrapped her legs around Neji's neck. With a grunt, she lifted her upper body, and then twisted, bringing down the Hyuga genius. His eyes grew wide in shock. Then, for some reason, he found himself smirking as Yasmine moved away from him. Again, they stood, facing one another. "I had been wondering where your clumsiness went." She only glared at him. "Turns out, it's still there. You did a good job concealing it. If you hadn't tripped just now, I wouldn't have known. Incorporating your lack of coordinated physical movements into your fighting style—whoever taught you is brilliant."

"Flattering won't make this any less bloody," Yasmine retorted.

"Why exactly are you doing this? It was a long time ago!"

"So what if it was a long time ago! I have a constant reminder in my head of what happened that day! It's your fault that my life is the way it is now! You even had the nerve to forget!"

"So did you!"

"Silence! What you said to me that day _broke_ me, Neji. As the victim, I have the right to break _you_!"

"In whose mind is that actually logically? Seriously, Yaya-chan, you're sounding more and more ridiculous." The girl's eyebrow twitched. "What caused you to hate me so much?"

"You said you hated me first, and after that… I killed the only family member I had left when I was only four. Do you know how that _feels_? You ruined my life…" Yasmine nearly hissed. Neji could not stop his eyes from widening. She had killed…? "If I had never heard those words, I would have never returned to that man."

"What about me, _huh_?" Neji found himself getting annoyed again. She only spoke of herself as if she was the only victim. "At that time, my father died and I took it out on you-" The foreigner seemed shocked by this information. "-Yes, that was wrong, but as my friend you should not have ran away! Because of your cowardice, your guardian attacked me, I lost my friend, and I erased you and him entirely from my memories… Do you know how _that_ feels? But how could you… You don't know what it's like to lose your parents."

By now, angry tears fell from Yasmine's eyes. She reached up and furiously wiped them away, yet they continued to stream down her face. His ignorant comments not only pissed her off, it also caused guilt. And she did not know why. "Who do you think you are? Blaming Hizashi-san's death on me—you're the one that's ridiculous!" Before Neji could respond, she shook her head, refusing to listen anymore. "I hate you!" The foreigner gave a human growl as she ran at him. She honestly could not believe it. Their friendship had ended because of a mistake—on _his_ part. It was still his fault no matter how anyone looked at it. _He_ was still to blame. "My parents died before I had met you… I saw them _both_ die before my very eyes." She fixed a glare on him so tense that it caused the Hyuga to take a step back. "Tell me—how you could possibly _think_ I don't know what it's like?"

Neji narrowly dodged as the foreigner tried to punch him. Her attacks were becoming sluggish, yet so was his defense. He watched her tormented expression as she continued to try to hit him. He had not known. An image of her—the younger version—had flashed through his mind, and so had her partially covered neck. It was the first and last time he had seen that scar. All this time, he had not known… Here, he had thought that she had failed him as a friend. In reality, however, _he_ was the failure. "Yaya-chan…" he murmured.

"Don't—don't you dare!"

"Yaya-chan," he said again.

"I said do-"

The Hyuga had suddenly wrapped his arms around her, binding her arms to her side. Yasmine was quick struggle. However, he had a firm grip on her. His chin rested between her neck and shoulder. Totally freaked by his behavior, the foreign girl's body completely tensed. He whispered her name and gave another apology. "No! Get away!" She put her arms in between their bodies, yet did little to separate the two young teens. "Let me go, mofo!"

"Yaya-chan…" He pulled his head back, but only slightly. The young genius downright ignored the glare he was receiving. He wore a look of guilty understanding. "I'm so sorry." Neji leaned forward, causing Yasmine's eyes to expand slightly. They grew wider when his lips touched hers. A tremor went from the bottom of her feet to the top of her. She could seriously imagine her hair standing on end and her body turning to stone.

The foreigner had not been the only one stunned.

* * *

"WHAT THE _HELL_?" Both shinobi were too surprised to be quiet. Similarly, the two kunoichi above them wore looks of astonishment. "Okay, things just got complicated!" Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "How the heck came you go from fighting to _kissing_?"

"It… can happen…?" Mayu was a bit unsure herself. After all, this was the very first time she had seen something like this. "Maybe it's a distraction tactic."

"That _Hyuga Neji_ thought up? That's only something _you'd_ think of!" Tenten glared at her comrade, while Mayu looked offended. "Hey, you're the one that used Sexy Jutsu and the oldest trick in the book!" The younger kunoichi pursed her lips, realizing that what was said was the truth. Her two male teammates flushed in embarrassment as they remembered Mayu's strategies. "I knew it! I knew it! This girl is bad news! She's making Neji do unsightly things—it's a genjutsu!"

"That is very unlikely, Tenten," Mayu replied. "Neji is the one who said she doesn't use chakra. The girl is not a ninja."

"She's as strong as one," Naruto scoffed.

"Yeah… To tell you the truth, I want to fight her," Mayu agreed with a nod.

"You're not the only one," Tenten muttered, frowning.

* * *

_Ne, Yaya-chan… we're best friends, right?_

_Best friends…? Yes, yes we are!_

_Then could I try kissing you? My father told me that I had to… on your cheek, but if you don't want-_

_I don't mind! If it means that we're best friends, I don't mind at all!_

Yasmine blinked several times as the memory flashed through her mind. Suddenly finding her strength, she pushed the Hyuga away and struck him across the face. The painful slap to his cheek left a red mark. His head was turned, yet he did not seem shocked by her actions. He merely turned his head back to face her. The same remorseful expression was written on his face. He didn't even have his Byakugan on anymore. The young foreigner clenched the teeth. "You're not allowed… You're not allowed to make me feel this way!" He reached for her again, referring to her by that nickname. "I said no!" She smacked him again. His right cheek now matched his other in color. Yasmine panted heavily, physically and emotionally worn out. The wetness dripped down from her chin, yet she paid no mind to it. Her focus was on Neji, and only on Neji. He opened his mouth to say something. "Shut up!" She smacked him again, forcing his head to turn. "Shut up!" Her strikes were getting weaker, yet she continued to slap him. "Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!"

The last hit was merely a gentle brush. Her body trembled. She could no longer see clearly because of the tears… probably. Neji did not know for sure. Her hand rested against his cheek. He could tell she was exhausted. Hell, he was, too. Yasmine shut her eyes and let out a strained sob. His face burned from her previous strikes, yet the pain was ignored. Slowly, Neji reached up and wrapped his fingers around her wrist. She made no move to stop him. She sank to her knees, causing him to do the same. Yasmine curled her fingers against his cheek. "Why…?" she cried. "Why di-did you say that? We could ha-have been…" It came as a surprise when her arms wrapped around him and her fingers clutched the back of his shirt. She buried her face, probably soaking his top. "How could you do this to me? I hate you…" Her voice was not as fierce as it had been.

Neji felt the wetness spread. Yasmine continued to cry. It occurred to him that Yasmine probably never cried—not truly. Her caretaker's philosophy 'make them think you're weak when you're strong' had been stuck in her head when they were younger. She most likely never shed a tear after leaving. "I know… I'm sorry." The young prodigy wrapped his arms around her in a comforting hug. No one had been there to console him when his father died, causing his loathing and bitterness for the main branch of his family. Yasmine was the same. No one must have been there to comfort her either, which is why her hatred for him drove her to revenge. He knew the feeling quite well. Neji held her tighter, allowing her to shed tears, which could finally be released after years of controlling them.

* * *

Mayu watched the two for a moment longer before deciding it was time to leave them. "Okay, guys, we're done." She shifted her body, preparing to move away. As expected, she received questioning looks. "It doesn't take a genius to figure out their conflict is resolved. We better get back to Chikara-sama so that Neji doesn't know we've been spying." Her teammates, as well as Tenten, frowned at her decision. The kunoichi mentally shrugged. That was to be expected. She bounded away, making sure to remain in the cover of the trees. She felt the presence of the others following her.

"I don't get it," Naruto finally said. "I wish I could hear what was going on…"

"Yeah, if she was so hell bent on revenge, why did she give up so easily in the end?" Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "If it were me, I wouldn't have held back and followed through."

"Perhaps," Mayu murmured.

"What's that supposed to mean?" The young Uchiha involuntarily glared at his female teammate.

"We don't know what was said between them. If you were in her shoes, maybe you would have given up as well. She did have a relationship with him. Maybe a part of her held onto those feelings she had?"

Mayu's optimistic tone annoyed him. She was acting so _nonchalant_ about the whole thing! She should not have been especially since revenge was something they sought after. _"Well, technically… it's just me."_ Sasuke's dark eyes turned away from Mayu's back. She, indeed, wanted Uchiha Itachi to be brought to justice. However, she wanted to _save_ him. Sasuke found himself glowering at the thought. What that man did was heinous. He did not deserve to be _saved_. He mentally scoffed. This was only further indication that Mayu still had lingering feelings for his brother. That is why, in the end, he would have to avenge his clan and hers. His eyes widen slightly as a sudden thought struck him.

Sasuke had always compared himself to Mayu. After all, she was the same as him. What if, though, he had the same feelings as her locked away somewhere? Would he hesitate when the time came _again_? The young Uchiha angrily shook his head. No—he was fully prepared to do what needed to be done. Uchiha Itachi had to pay for his deeds! When the time came, he would definitely deal the finishing blow. He narrowed his eyes for a moment. _"Won't I…?" _Shit—the outcome of Neji and that foreigner's fight continued to flicker through his head. Great, this is just what he needed.

Stupid doubts…

* * *

Slowly, her eyes fluttered open. She released a sigh as she stared down at the water. Not once did her gaze shift to his reflection. Her foot came out of the water. She examined her toes for a moment before plunging her foot back into the water. Somehow, in the span of ten minutes, they had both moved to the water's edge. She sat at the water's edge with her legs in the river. He sat on his legs beside her. Not one word had been exchanged against them since her crying ceased.

Neji sat there, eyes closed and brows furrowed. He wondered what he should say now to break the ice. The atmosphere wasn't necessarily awkward, yet… he felt the need to say something. "Where did you go after you left? Were you in this village the entire time?" That was a good start. Hopefully, things would be cleared up completely. Yasmine made a noise as if she was actually thinking about how to answer him.

"No, I wasn't here the entire time," she finally responded. "Actually, I've been in this village for a few months." He realized that she did not answer his question about where she went. "Before coming to this village, I resided in another. This family took care of me for awhile. Luckily for me, the mother and father were fighters. They trained me a bit before I left."

"They must be strong."

"I guess, but it was really my parental unit who trained me the most. I kinda miss that overzealous old woman," Yasmine murmured. "Yasume hated her guts, but she appreciated her talent."

"Yasume…?" Neji repeated, staring down at his reflection. A frown graced his face. "Is what she said true? Am I responsible for your split personality, Yasmine?"

"… She exaggerated. You weren't that special," she lied. "But I guess you did contribute."

"I see."

The two sat in silence for a time. Yasmine began to fidget. She did not mind the quiet atmosphere. However, there was something that she needed to know. "So Hizashi-san died at that time…? I had no idea. I did not even consider that possibility. I understand how you felt. I loved him, too. Maybe not as much as his own son, but I did love him, which is why I can understand. All that anger and sadness—it is what I felt when my parents died. But…" Her reflection glared back at her. "I cannot understand why you focused that anger on _me_-" She cut her eyes to him. "-your best friend—isn't that what I was?"

He looked away guiltily. However, Yasmine kept her full attention on the Hyuga genius. In all honesty, the question had been plaguing her since she remembered. It didn't make sense to her. As children, they were not mere acquaintances. They had been true, close friends—at least that is what she had thought. Neji opened his mouth, yet only a sigh came out. Yasmine let out a sigh of her own. She supposed this is what prompted him to answer. "I was… foolish… and jealous."

"Jealous? Of _what_? You were the amazing one!"

"… I was jealous of you because you still had someone I did not." Neji clenched his hands against his knees. "When you said my father's name, I became angry. In my mind it was not fair that you still had a parent while I did not. And so I made the mistake of yelling at you." He turned his eyes back to the foreigner. "I didn't truly hate you—I didn't…" He lowered his lavender eyes. "I-" Yasmine suddenly punched him in the arm. "OW! What was that for?"

"Stupid! How could you assume that?" She crossed her arms and looked away from him. "I thought you were a genius!"

"Will you quit throwing that word around? Being a genius doesn't mean I'm _smart_!" The Hyuga regretted the words as soon as they exited his mouth.

The foreigner instantly started laughing at his mistake. Neji opened his mouth to amend what he said, yet decided not to. He hadn't heard her laughter in such a long time. She had the exact same laugh, too. Even with a violent and brash alter ego, even with a traumatic past—she could still smile and laugh. The Hyuga prodigy found himself smiling. Her smiling had always been contagious. Neji suddenly stood, causing Yasmine's laughter to fade. He outstretched his hand to her. "Let's return home." Her gaze shifted to his hand and eyes several times.

"Home…?"

"The Leaf village, I mean. You were never meant to leave, so it is your home. You have spent too much time away already. I'm sure there are one or two people, wanting to see you." Her brown eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Yaya-chan, are you ready?"

"Yes…!" The young teen nodded her head as she took his hand. "I'm ready, and I forgive you."

"Thank you."

**Well, isn't this just fucking perfect! He can still go to hell for all I care!**

* * *

Finished June 8, 2010

**Neji & Yasmine/Yasume**: It was a bit fun writing this chapter. I find Neji and Yasmine's characters interesting to interact with each other. Their relationship is very much unique and I like writing about it. However, most likely, they'll stay friends. I don't know how TFK-fan118 did it, but I _can't_! Perhaps, maybe, but not right now. Anyway, Yasume is quite the character to write about as well. She will be a reoccurring character as well as the story progresses.

**Abilities**: I'm sure you can guess where Yasume's speed came from and who actually taught her. Yeah, it was a bit of an afterthought putting that samurai in this story. Lol, of course Yasume is not as fast as him, but she is still fast. As for Yasmine's paralyzing ability-that came directly from TFKfan's story. And I believe she got it from _Avatar: The Last Airbender_. Yeah, that old lady from her story is a trip to make Yasmine _learn_ something like that!

**Team 7**: Yes, I know I haven't been focusing on them recently, but after this the focus will be shifted back to Naruto, Sasuke, and Mayu—oh, and Kakashi, too. The next couple of chapters will be quite the blast… I hope. Get ready for the appearance of those action-packed fights again! They are just around the corner.

Next time: _Bad Reputation_

Looking forward to your reviews.


	26. Bad Reputation

Tsunade's eyebrow twitched at the sight of the giant grin. The girl—clearly a foreigner—seemed to be too much at ease. Apparently, she was the one causing trouble in the Land of Udon. Her eyes scanned over the report the squad leader had given to her. The fifth Fire Shadow frowned as her gaze shifted back up to the grinning foreigner. Cheeky brat, she thought. For some strange reason, that grin irked her. Tsunade leaned back in her chair as she set the papers back down on her desk. For the moment, she ignored the ninja in the room in favor of staring down the foreigner. "So…" she began. "Why did you do it?" The girl actually had the audacity to shrug!

"Because I could, I guess," she answered. Before Tsunade could shout, Hyuga Neji stepped beside the girl. He placed a hand on her shoulder, causing the foreigner to turn her eyes to him. "Neji, what-"

"She is our leader now, Yaya-chan. Please show her respect."

"_Ah_…!" The foreigner exclaimed as if she just realized it. Tsunade's upper lip twitched. The foreigner girl quickly bowed. "I apologize if my behavior is disrespectful, Hokage-sama! I did not mean to appear rude in any way!" Tsunade pursed her lips. At least the girl had some manners.

"Never mind that now… What happened to this brother of yours?" she questioned. "Yasmine-san, is it?"

Yasmine nodded her head in confirmation before opening her mouth to explain. She did not want to reveal too much concerning Deidara. "He was not truly my brother—only a mere traveling companion." The foreigner still could not believe that she had been traveling with a future member of Akatsuki! However, it was probably for the best that she kept her mouth shut about that. "As for his whereabouts… I truly do not know." Technically, that was not a lie. "Our time together was supposed to be temporary. I knew he would leave eventually." Yasmine noticed the way Tsunade's eyes narrowed. "He didn't like to stay in one place for too long…" Hopefully, that's what the village's leader wanted to hear. Judging from that frown, it was not.

"What was his _name_?"

"Deidara-sa… Deidara-san…" Crap, she had almost used the –sama honorific. That would have been added suspicion. After that, the room became quiet again. Neji had slipped his hand from her shoulder by now. Yasmine swallowed nervously. What a weird atmosphere, she thought. She cleared her throat. "Could I speak freely, Hokage-sama?" Tsunade gave a nod. "We were originally traveling to this village, but got distracted in that other village. But I would really like to reside in this village permanently, if possible. I did live here once for a time."

"You did…?"

"Yes, Neji and the Third can vouch for that."

A small frowned appeared on the foreigner's face. According to Mayu, the old man was still alive and well. It was not as if Yasmine was unhappy with this. However, that was a pretty big change that happened. Also, the fact that Gaara was a citizen of Konoha was mind blowing as well. These drastic events would probably mess up the entire plot of _Naruto_. These things probably didn't start happening weirdly until a different kunoichi joined Team 7. That was another thing. Where exactly was Sakura? Mayu hadn't been too clear on the details. Hopefully, once they were alone, things could come to light. As a true fan of the show, the news was a bit unsettling to hear. But what's done is done, and it could not be changed. Yasmine was anxious to find out exactly everything that had changed.

Tsunade suddenly let out a frustrated sigh. "Honestly, kid, I don't know what to do with you. I wasn't expecting a former citizen when I told them to bring you to the Leaf village." The busty woman folded her arms and closed her eyes. "In fact, I expected someone who would be placed in prison… after an interrogation of course." She anticipated a reaction from the foreigner, yet the girl only continued to smile. "I suppose I could put you in an orphanage."

"Impossible…!" Neji spoke again. Tsunade raised a curious brow again. "Yaya-chan need not be in such a place. I will take care of her."

"Hyuga-san…" Tsunade leaned forward. "You do know that your statement is out of the question, so I am surprised you would even suggest it." The Hyuga clan was very picky about who they allowed to visit their estate, let alone reside there. As far as anyone was concerned, only Hyuga lived there. Taking a foreign girl into their home—the very thought was absurd. Neji narrowed his eyes, yet looked away. He knew she spoke the truth. As a branch member, he did not have enough influence to persuade anyone to allow Yasmine to stay within the Hyuga household. "I will speak with Sarutobi-sensei and see what he has to say about this. In the meantime, you will cohabitate with Ishikari Mayu."

"_Eh_…?" Both girls reacted to Tsunade's sudden decision.

"In the report, it says that you understand the foreigner more than anyone… Besides, what else could I do under such short notice?" The Fire Shadow stood from her seat. "I have to pull files, speak with Sarutobi-sensei, _and_ find someplace else for Yasmine-san to live. Fine the time being, you two are going to have to deal with it."

"But I don't want to live with Mary-sue… Her perfect traits might rub off on me," Yasmine grumbled. Her remark caused Mayu to strike her on top of her head. "OW!"

"Stop calling me that!"

"Mayu's far from perfect, you know," Sasuke commented, shoving his hands into his pockets. Naruto nodded his head in agreement.

"Yeah, if she wasn't my teammate-"

"Just who's side are you on?"

Tsunade rubbed her temple and promptly dismissed the young teens.

* * *

"You can put your stuff down on the couch—that's where you will sleep," Mayu stated, closing the door as Yasmine moved to pass her. The foreigner removed her shoes and made herself right at home, after apologizing for her intrusion. The kunoichi eyed the girl for a bit longer. Her arrival in this world was still shrouded in mystery. Mayu narrowed her eyes. Yasmine remained oblivious to her stare. When they were exchanging information, the foreigner did not mention _how_ she had gotten here. This wasn't _really_ fan fiction. There was no way she was sucked into some faulty appliance. Stuff like that didn't truly happen. Mayu frowned and leaned against the wall. In her case, of course it was possible—her mother had done the jutsu, after all. Yasmine was no in no way related to the Ishikari clan. _"So how did she get here… once before as well…" _The kunoichi crossed her arms. Her blue eyes closed in thought. _"According to Neji, she appeared and disappeared in the same year, so it's not like we passed each other when mother performed the forbidden jutsu._ _Besides, we were nowhere near each other. She lived in America and I lived in Tokyo_._" _Mayu slowly opened her eyes. Her head reared back sharply, banging against the wall. Yasmine was standing right in front of her.

Their noses were practically touching!

"Ne, Mary-sama! What's for dinner?"

It took everything in Mayu not to scream and knock the foreigner away from her. Taking deep breath, she moved around Yasmine. "_Uh_… I'm not making it if that's what you're asking. Me and my teammates are going for ramen in an hour or so." Mayu shrugged her shoulders. "You can come if you want, I guess."

"An hour…?" Her stomach seemed to growl as if on cue. The kunoichi gave a flat look as Yasmine clutched her belly. "How do you expect me to wait that long?" She sighed wearily. Mayu rolled her eyes and walked into the kitchen, hoping to find water. "Not even Deidara-sama was this mean to me!" With a gasp, the Ishikari returned her focus on the girl. She practically stomped back over Yasmine. "What…?" The foreigner leaned her upper body back because Mayu had gotten quite close.

"What did you just say?" she asked. "You can't be talking about _that_ Deidara, right?"

"_Hah_… I forgot you understood English."

"Answer me!"

"… Yes, Deidara-sama of Akatsuki! I did say it before…" Mayu could only stare slack jawed. However, her stunned—and probably jealous—expression was ignored. Yasmine began to launch into her fan girl mode. "Who would have thought that I, Yasmine Dalton, was with a member of that infamous organization for three months? I even had the honor of calling him my brother! Also, Deidara-sama liked me, too!" She sighed dreamily, clasping her hands together. "Because of Deidara-sama, Akatsuki came for him and I was able to meet others! To see Itachi-sama and Kisame-sama—I am _truly_ fortunate!" Yasmine was quickly snapped out of her daydream of Dawn. Mayu had begun to shake her shoulders relentlessly until she paid attention. Talk about rude! "What the hell, Mary-sama?"

"Listen to me! You must never mention your involvement with that guy! If anyone asks, you barely know him and he never talked about himself!" The kunoichi squeezed the foreigner's shoulders. "On top of that, keep your Narutard actions controlled! We can't have anyone figuring out about this, alright?" Slowly, Yasmine nodded her head. Mayu's grip loosened. After stumbling away from the foreigner, she slumped down on the couch, suddenly exhausted. It was probably going to be very troublesome living with a fan of the show. There was no telling what she would do if she came into contact with… pretty much any ninja in their age group. _"Man, I hope she isn't a Sasuke fan girl…"_ Mayu mentally shuddered, remembering her friend, Megumi.

"_Uh_… I have a question…" The kunoichi lazily shifted her gaze back to the foreigner. She was now sitting on the floor, one outstretched leg over the other. Her expression was curious, so Mayu nodded her head. "You said that you've been here for months, right? So do you have anyone's autograph?" The flat look returned to Mayu's face. "Hey, you said Narutard, so you must be a fan as well, right? Who's your favorite?" The young Ishikari sighed heavily before answering. Although, it was annoying as hell that the foreigner continued to call her _Mary-sama_, she was still trying to be friendly.

"Gaara-kun," she replied. "Though for awhile… he was tied with Lee."

"Really? It was the same for me, but in the end my favorite became Lee-kun!" Yasmine nearly bounced with excitement. Mayu sat up straight and stared at the girl on the floor. She raised a brow. Not many guys appreciated Rock Lee based on his looks alone. This was the first time meeting someone didn't care about his thick eyebrows. "What about your favorite kunoichi? My favorite is Hi-"

"-Nata…" Mayu finished. The two girls blinked in surprised. While Hinata was simply adorable, most girls disregarded her due to her seemingly lack of action. Yasmine nodded her head in agreement, stating that the Hyuga heir had potential to become the best. Mayu stood and sat down opposite of the foreigner. She was really interested now. "Say, if you could fight anyone on the show, who would it be and why?"

"Sasuke—because he needs to be taken down a peg or two." To both girls' astonishment, they said this in unison. Yasmine still seemed a bit skeptic. "Okay, who's the character you hate the most?"

"Kabuto!" Again, the two answered in unison. Both girls shared a smile. "Holy crap, did we just become friends?"

"I think we just did!" Mayu agreed with a nod.

"Sweet!" Yasmine high-fived the kunoichi, sealing the bond between them.

Before they could further celebrate, a knock on the door interrupted. The two stared at the door in silence until the knocking came again. Quickly, Mayu stood and headed toward the entrance. It was most likely her teammates. They were earlier than expected. The two did say they had wanted to get some rest. However, when she opened the door, Naruto and Sasuke were not there. Instead, there stood an old man. "Ho-Hokage-sama…!" The kunoichi exclaimed in surprise. The Third merely chuckled at the stunned expression.

"That is no longer my title, Ishikari-san. There is no need for you to refer to me as such," Sarutobi stated. Mayu bowed her head and apologized. The old man shook his head. "I heard from Tsunade that a foreigner has reappeared. If it's not too much trouble, could I speak with you two?"

"No, there's no trouble! Please come in!" Mayu stood aside, allowing the village's former Fire Shadow to enter.

"Pardon the intrusion."

The kunoichi swallowed nervously as she followed the Third into the living room. Yasmine was already standing. She looked just about ready to ask for an autograph. "Sandaime…" Yasmine murmured, most likely star struck. Sarutobi placed his hands behind his back and moved closer to the foreigner.

"_Ah_, so it is you, Yasmine-san. Finally you have returned to us." He gave a friendly smile. Yasmine bowed politely and returned the smile. "It seems like only yesterday that you were much smaller. You have grown quite a bit since I last saw you."

"Yes, it's been nearly nine years, but you haven't changed at all, Ojiisan!" The foreigner's statement caused Sarutobi to chuckle. "Please sit—make yourself comfortable!" The former leader nodded and sat down on the couch. The two girls resumed sitting on the floor. They stared at Sarutobi expectedly. "I'm sure you have questions…"

"Indeed I do, Yasmine-san. You see, Ishikari-san and yourself are very special. Traveling through worlds we know not of is an amazing thing." He noticed the two girls exchange a look before returning their focus back on him. "I know very well that you came from a completely different place… What I want to know is _how_. Ishikari-san was able to do so thanks to her mother's jutsu. For you, it should not have been possible, and yet it was. You arrival and disappearances are shrouded in mystery, Yasmine-san. I hope we can find the link connecting you to Ishikari Mayu." Both girls appeared hesitant on speaking. "You may speak freely. I have already cast a jutsu so that if anyone were to pass by, they would not here anything."

"So cool…! As expected of Sandaime!" If Sarutobi looked closely enough, he would see the sparkles suddenly surrounding the foreigner. She truly admired him.

"I, too, have been pondering your appearance in this world, Yasmine," Mayu stated. Her blue eyes slid over to the foreign girl. "I'm sure we are not related or anything like that and casting jutsu is just not something that is possible in that other world. Yasmine laughed at that.

"Yeah, you don't know how many times I tried and failed using the Rasengan!" The kunoichi rolled her eyes. Even if it was possible to use jutsu, Mayu doubted that Yasmine could use Naruto's strongest attack. Yasmine shrugged. "I'm not too sure how I got here either, though."

"There must be _something_! Try to remember what happened the first time you appeared here," Mayu urged. Yasmine's brown eyes shifted toward the floor. She appeared to be lost in thought. "Well…?" After a few moments, Mayu became impatient.

"I can't really remember anything _significant_. It's not like the television was broken…" Yasmine murmured. Mentally, the kunoichi sighed. The foreigner had the same mind as her, it appeared. "But I will tell you things leading up to meeting the ninja in this village." She took a deep breath before releasing it slowly. She narrowed her eyes. "My uncle was pissed and drunk. I came off later than usual, so he attacked me. That's how I got this scar on my back." Mayu noticed the way the old man's eyes widen in surprise, and then narrowed in anger. "He was abusive, so I was used to the beatings. However, this time had had actually used a weapon… In the next moment, I woke up in the rain."

The two ninja were silent. Well, of course they were. Most frowned upon beating up a child. When Deidara had accidently seen a part of the scar, he demanded to know who had done it. He was incensed to find out it had been a relative. He had even congratulated Yasume on killing the bastard. Everyone that had found out had pitied her and insulted her uncle. However, Yasmine only felt guilt about his death. Although, he beat her for no reason, he was still family—her father's brother. He did not _need_ to die. "Not to sound indifferent, but why…?" Mayu finally spoke. Yasmine looked at her in confusion, tilting her head to the side. "I mean just because you were late he attacked with a sharp object? Why was it the first time he used a weapon? Why were you late?"

"_Hm_… I went to the library that day. It was a safe place. You see, my uncle was an alcoholic. He would drink at a certain time, and at a certain time, he would pass out. When he started drinking, I would sneak out to the library…" Yasmine explained. "This was the one place where I could sleep peacefully without worrying about being waked up. I also knew to come home at a certain time while he was still passed out." The two said nothing, waiting for her to continue. "Like normal, I went to the library, grabbed a random book, and used it as a pillow in the kid's section. That time, though, I did not wake up myself. One of the people working there had. I immediately knew I was in deep trouble. It was dark outside, after all." Yasmine shrugged her shoulders. "I went home, and then that's when he hit me… and you know the rest."

Mayu bit her lip. She didn't mean to sound unaffected by the story, but those details told her absolutely nothing. Her uncle—could he be responsible? The kunoichi mentally shook her head. No, it was impossible, right? He could not have been the link Sarutobi was talking about. Speaking of which, the old man cleared his throat. "Yasmine-san," he began, gaining the attention of both girls. "I am not hearing anything that could have sent you here… But perhaps that book you slept on had something to do with it. Tell me, did your head rest on the cover or the pages."

"Book…?" Yasmine repeated. She tapped her chin, looking upward. "The pages were more cushiony than the cover. But I don't think it could have been the book."

"You never know. Books have the power to start, as well as end, wars… I would not be surprised if a book could send those fortunate enough to a different world."

The former leader's words made Mayu narrow her eyes. She had recalled her _other_ father saying something similar. "What did the book look like?" she asked. According to Yasmine, the book was old and it smelt weird. Mayu had to roll her eyes at that one. The foreigner also said that the book was written in Spanish and that the ink was not printed onto the pages. "Spanish…?"

"Yeah, I tried to read some of it—sounding out the words—but I eventually got bored and went to sleep," Yasmine said. "You know something… It didn't even have a barcode on it or anything like that. Library books usually do…" The kunoichi's eyes expanded.

_You __**lost**__ it? Do you know how important that book is? … Library…? __**HOW**__ MANY YEARS AGO? WE WERE SUPPOSED TO GIVE THAT BOOK TO MAYU FOR HER TWELFTH BIRTHDAY! … How could you do this to me, mom? You were supposed to keep it safe until this point! … Yes, yes, I will tell him… No, it can't be replaced! You have to go back and find it! … For both our sakes, it better still be there!_

Mayu recalled her _other_ mother screaming into the phone one morning. Her other father had already left for work. Ishikari Sheena had believed she was gone as well, but school was starting later that day. When asked what was all the screaming was about, her other mother had told her that a present had been misplaced. Quickly, Sheena had stated that her mother would find it and ship it out as soon as possible. Her other grandmother had accidently left it behind at a local library. Mayu's mouth opened in shock. "You _slept_ on the Ishikari clan's secret book?"

"_Eh_… Sorry…?"

"No, I mean… That is who you got here the first time! You must have drooled and got the ink wet… The words stuck to your face, and when you got home, you were hurt. Those are all the ingredients needed," Mayu explained. Yasmine still looked confused. "That's one of the reasons it's a forbidden jutsu. The caster and/or person being sent away have to be hurt—physically or emotionally for the jutsu to work."

"But I didn't do any hand signs," Yasmine stated. "The show didn't even exist back then!"

"Doesn't matter… You were touched by Ishikari, and that's why you arrived here," Mayu said.

"Then that means…" The foreigner suddenly gasped as if coming to a realization. "The _book_! I found it again! It must have sent me here the second time, too!"

"Wait, what?" Mayu put on a skeptic face. "You _found_ it again? I admit the first time was a coincidence, but finding it again is just downright weird!"

"Well, I did. After my uncle passed away, I became a ward of the state. Luckily, I was adopted quickly. Unfortunately, she wasn't a nice old lady like I thought. She was hell bent on making me stronger. Anyway, my parental unit had just finished beating the crap outta me—oh, well, _she_ called it _training_. She told me that her granddaughter, my pen pal, was coming to visit for the summer, so she wanted the house to be clean from top to bottom. Again, she called it training my body, so I had no choice was to do it. That's when I saw the book. It was in the attic. I took that book to my room, planning on reading it later. Weeks later, after cleaning the house for nothing because my pen pal didn't show up, I realized that I still had the book in my room. That book is the last thing I touched before I found myself in a forest."

"And what is the name of your caretaker?" The former Hokage finally spoke again. Both girls jumped a bit, forgetting he was in the room.

"_Ah_, her name is Theresa."

"_Eh_…? As in Granny Theresa?"

The room had become silent again. Sarutobi could only watch the two girls, waiting for one of them to speak again. The link had already been discovered in his mind. He guessed that it would take some time before the shock wore off the two females. They were still staring at one another wide-eyed. This Theresa woman was the adoptive parent to the foreigner and the other grandmother to Ishikari Mayu. "Whaaaaaaaaaaa?" They pointed fingers at one another. "You're Muya-chan!"

"And you're Jasmine-san—my aunt!"

"Hey! It's _Yas_mine not _Jas_mine!"

"What about you, huh? My name is Mayu, not Muya!"

"Your 'u's and 'a's look alike!"

"Well, your 'y's look like 'j's! How you managed that is a mystery!"

"…"

"…"

"HOLY CRAP!"

In unison, the two girls wrapped each other in a hug. It must have been a bit uncomfortable because they were still sitting, legs folded. Bizarre, Sarutobi thought. He blinked in confusion, and then smiled warmly. It sounded as though they knew each other before hand. They pulled back, but only slightly. "I can't believe you were my best friend this whole time! You're so much prettier than I imagined!" Yasmine smiled brightly. "How come you didn't come to America in the summer?"

"By then, I was already _here_!" Mayu grinned. "I can't believe we were still able to meet!"

"Me neither!" The two finally released each other. The kunoichi shook her head as if she still couldn't believe something like this was possible. It only meant that the connection between the two was much deeper than a person.

"This cannot be just a coincidence. This is fate, Yasmine! You were supposed to be here with me. That is the only reasonable explanation!"

"But it's not reasonable," Yasmine commented. "But I guess it doesn't matter! There's so much I want to ask you!"

"Me too! Like how the heck can you possibly think I had a crush on Ichiro?"

The two burst into laughter. They seemed to have forgotten about the former leader. Clearing his throat, Sarutobi successfully regained their attention. They seemed a bit embarrassed for their behavior in his presence. "I am glad that you have yet another friend in the Leaf village, Yasmine-san." The foreigner nodded her head in agreement. "The same goes for you, Ishikari-san. You connection to this girl has brought her back… where she hopefully belongs." The kunoichi looked near tears. The former Hokage finally stood. "I shall take my leave for now. I do not want to intrude on your reunion any longer. Have a good day." The great old man then left the apartment building, closing the door softly behind him. The two returned their eyes back to one another.

"So you've got to tell me now."

"What?"

"Why did you cause all that trouble in the Land of Udon. It's not really something I'd think you would do."

"Okay, I'll tell you… since we're best friends and all!" The kunoichi nodded her head in agreement. This caused the foreigner to continue with a smile. "Well, ever since I realized where I was, I had this plan."

"You began planning as _soon_ as you realized you were in _Naruto_?"

"Yes, of course! I may not look it, but there's a pretty elaborate brain behind his cute face!"

"Of course—to be friends with Hyuga Neji, you'd have to be smart," Mayu remarked.

"Anyway, I ended up in a village hundreds of miles away from this one, according to the family that let me live with them temporarily," Yasmine continued. "I stayed with them for a couple of months formulating. The mother of that family happened to be a former kunoichi. She taught me how to throw a kunai. Her husband was a former samurai, so I learned much from those two. Maybe it was luckier that I ended up rescuing their kid." The foreigner grinned. "That reminds me, I have to write to them as soon as I get the chance!" Mayu told Yasmine to not get distracted. "Sorry—_ah_, I had to leave them months later. As a hardcore fan, I knew that I had to make the long journey to the home of Naruto Uzumaki!" The kunoichi rolled her eyes. "However…! That is when I discovered Deidara-sama. He was hurt pretty badly. At the time, I had no idea who he was… I treated him, and disposed of the Yakuza gang that he had been working for. He became indebted to be after that. After spending some time getting to know each other, I realized that it would be impossible for the _both_ of us to enter Konoha. They would definitely find out about his status, so I figured we'd stop in the Land of Udon and instead of us going to them-"

"-We would come to you, bringing you here without knowing that it was your goal," Mayu finished, staring at the girl in admiration. She shook her head a few times. "All this drama just to get to the Leaf…? Man, I'm glad you're on our side." Yasmine only grinned. Mentally, the kunoichi was serious sighing in relief. She would have never thought that even if she knew the foreigner was a fan. Her plan to get to the Leaf village was more complex than it needed to be. It took months for her goal to happen, yet it did. It was people with minds like hers that needed to be watched. People like Yasmine—you could never know what they were thinking. "So what happened to Deidara, anyway?"

"Deidara-sama paid his debt, I guess. In his mind, he saved my life that night you saw him." Yasmine nodded her head, closed her eyes, and folded her arms. "He is probably making his way to that organization now. They came for him, you know."

"Yeah, I know…" Mayu narrowed her eyes. Chikara, the village's daimyo had given a distinct characteristic of Akatsuki to them. "If you knew he was going to be a part of that organization, why didn't you try to stop his initiation?"

"And screw up the plot? That's nuts! Kishimoto-sama would have my head!"

"I would say 'wow,' but in order for that to happen, I would need to be surprised." Mayu produced a flat look. "I am not surprised."

"You shouldn't try to understand a mind of a Narutard, ne?"

* * *

"You're late." Uchiha Sasuke did not look up from his partially empty bowl of miso ramen. His statement caused his blond teammate to turn his head to the entrance of the Ichiraku ramen stand. Standing there looking slightly apologetic was there female team member. She quickly took her place in between the two shinobi. After ordering chicken ramen, she did not say anything. "So what took you?" Sasuke was the one who broke the silence. "You know I hate to wait. Naruto's already on his seventeenth bowl."

"My bad—girl talk took a bit longer than expected."

"Girl talk…?" Naruto chuckled. "Are you and that foreigner best friends now?"

"Yup!" Mayu grinned. She did not notice the looks exchanged from her teammates. "Yasmine is my best friend. We have a connection—closer than sisters!"

Despite her being late, Sasuke could not help but to smirk. He noticed Naruto had relaxed at her words as well. This was good. Perhaps now Mayu wouldn't feel as bad loosing Yamanaka Ino and Hyuga Hinata as friends. "Anyway, now that you both are here, we have something very important to discuss." His teammates gave him inquiring gazes. "You won't believe what I heard."

"So stop leaving us in suspense and tell us already!" A bowl was placed in front of her, causing Mayu's blue eyes to brighten. Her attention was momentarily taken by the chicken ramen. "Itadakimasu!" She clapped her hands in delight. The young Uchiha smirked again.

"In a few months, the genin squads are going to get together to decide who's going to become chuunin." His statement caused both of his teammates to gap at him. "It's true—the Third ordered it himself, saying that it was a shame that the exam was interrupted before we could show our true potential. So it's giving everyone who didn't make it in the preliminary a chance to advance."

"How long did you know about this?" Naruto asked.

"Just found out—I visited that guy in the hospital earlier."

"_Ah_, that guy…" Mayu murmured. "How's he holding up?"

"Yeah, is that guy getting better?" Naruto asked, going back to slurping his noodles.

"_Oi_…!" A lazy voice sounded a bit offended. Three heads turned to the entrance. Hatake Kakashi nearly glowered at the three young teens. "Is that anyway to refer to your sensei?" The jounin sat down on the stool beside Sasuke. Not waiting for a response, Kakashi ordered himself a bowl of ramen. He felt the intense stares of his three subordinates. Kakashi mentally chuckled. They had developed into such a cute, headstrong team. Finally, Naruto became impatient and burst into hysterics. Question after question was fired at him, demanding answers. "Calm down, Naruto." The jounin turned in his seat, eyeing the three. "As Sasuke stated, a _special_ chuunin exam will be held in a couple of months. I say special because it will only be held for the genin squads of the Leaf village. Also, only one match will decide who will advance in rank.

"One match…? You mean we only have to fight once this time?"

"Does that mean that there's no written test either?" Naruto sounded a bit too excited.

"That's right, Mayu." Kakashi then focused on the blond. "And yes, there will be no written portion." The Uzumaki child shot a fist in the air and exclaimed in glee. "Unfortunately, the news was announced while you were out of the village. The other teams have a head start in their training. So for awhile, we will solely work on your bodies. However, because you have just come from a mission, we won't start our vigorous training today-"

"And because you've just come out of the hospital."

"But tomorrow is a new day," continued Kakashi, ignoring the Uchiha's smartass remark. "We'll start bright and early under the waterfall."

"Under the waterfall?" Mayu sounded a bit incredulous. "We're getting wet, aren't we?"

"I suppose you will—bring appropriate attire. _Ah_, itadakimasu!" He immediately noticed the looks he received from the younger ninja. They were trying to be discreet about spying on his face, yet they failed horribly at that. Kakashi smiled a bit as he reached up to remove his mask. Perhaps he should let them see a glimpse, since they were getting along so well? The jounin sharply turned his head. "There's a massive killer intent coming our way!" The three, forgetting about their surveillance, turned in their seats, trying to locate the killer intent. _Nah_, they shouldn't have called him 'that guy' in such an aloof manner. After quickly finishing his meal, Kakashi stood up, regaining their attention. "Gochisousama," he chuckled at their disappointed and pissed looks. He turned to face them. "Don't forget—3:00 sharp!"

He then used the Transportation Jutsu, leaving no room for argument.

"Please… please tell me he meant in the afternoon when the water is slightly warmer!" Mayu grabbed her head as if she already knew the answer. "Kakashi-sensei can be really cruel…" The kunoichi slurp up some noodles. "Getting up so early—I bet it'll still be dark!"

"I bet Kakashi-sensei won't even show up on time." Naruto murmured, and then ordered another bowl.

"We won't know how late he might be, so we don't have much choice but to be there at the time he set." Sasuke crossed his arms, suddenly irritated.

"We could always work on our taijutsu while we wait for him," Mayu suggested. The kunoichi wiped her chin of the broth before continuing. "That way, time won't be-" She suddenly stopped, causing her teammates to focus their eyes on her. Her eyes were wide, mouth agape. "My… My fan girl senses are tingling." She announced, turning. Sasuke made a flat expression.

"Your… _what_?"

"_AH_! That means Gaara's close by!" Naruto exclaimed, also turning.

"You actually _condone_ this!"

Ignoring Sasuke, the blond nearly hopped out of his seat and exited the ramen stand. Seconds later, he appeared again with the former Sand shinobi by his side. "Panda-chan!" Mayu's eyes sparkled. "It's been like forever!" Her fingers locked together as she stared in admiration at Gaara. The red head dipped his head, acknowledging her. His sea green eyes shifted to the Uchiha before doing the same thing. Sasuke grunted, and then turned back to his meal. "You can sit next to me, Gaara-kun!" Unceremoniously, Mayu pushed her teammate from his stool, eyes still on Gaara.

"Oi! What the hell, Mayu?" An enraged Uchiha all but growled.

"That is not necessary." Gaara stated. "I am on my way to the Yamanaka Flower shop."

"So you're gonna buy flowers for some pretty girl?" Naruto asked with a grin.

"No." Although his tone and expression were blank, Gaara could not conceal the pink tint that settled on his cheeks. Both Naruto and Mayu mentally gushed over the fact. "I am actually an employee there."

"Oh, that's right! I can't believe I forgot! But it's so late, though. Shouldn't that place be closed?" Mayu remarked.

"Yes… However, I must water the plants at this time."

"I see… Want us to come with you?" Mayu asked.

"Yeah, yeah! We can do it together!" Naruto nodded.

"I suppose that would be fine…"

"What do you think, Sasuke?" The kunoichi looked toward the silent Uchiha, who had picked himself off of the ground. The other two males watched him, awaiting his answer.

"Don't talk to me right now. I just might kill you."

* * *

After saying goodbye to her teammates and friends, Mayu decided to search for her houseguest. The Narutard was most likely exploring the village, _oohing_ and _aahing_ at the sights. The kunoichi chuckled lightly. It would probably be most disastrous if Yasmine happened upon any of the genin—especially Rock Lee. That encounter would not be considered in anyone's favor. _"But where could she be now?"_ Her best friend—she still couldn't believe—could be predictable at times. For example, she did not write for months one time. The reason was simple. She was recovering from an eating contest—_seriously_. Unsurprisingly, she won the contest and her adoptive parent, Theresa made her work all the calories off.

Mayu walked her head as she continued to walk. It was all too much of a coincidence. It was so strange that they were linked in such a way. Theresa was the mother of Ishikari Sheena, making the old woman her grandmother. "So bizarre…" The kunoichi suddenly stopped. Somehow, she had reached a training field. She hadn't meant to come here, yet here she stood. Her blue eyes darted to and fro, recognizing the field. It was the same area where Team 7 had to capture the bells from there sensei. Actually, this was the perfect place for the foreigner to be. The fan in her wouldn't possibly pass this place up. Yasmine would visit several times.

Nodding her head, the young Ishikari jumped onto one of the three stumps. She sat down, legs folded. No doubt the foreigner would turn up here again. Mayu looked up. The half moon shined down on her from its position in the night sky. The stars, though, were mostly covered by night clouds. The kunoichi sighed. She'd wait for at least ten minutes. If Yasmine didn't show up, then Mayu would return home. The foreigner could very well take care of herself, so she wasn't worried about it.

The wind suddenly shifted, causing Mayu to shiver. Her eyes opened again, only to see something. Three figures were making their way to the field. They were coming out of the forest. The kunoichi's body involuntarily flinched when she caught sight of their faces. Quickly she moved off the stump, hoping they hadn't seen her. It was dark, after all. Mayu briskly walked in the opposite direction. She really didn't feel like dealing with those three at the moment. Well, Hinata and Ino—she could handle. It was Sakura that truly irked her. Because of her the other two girls had turned their back on her, and it didn't seem as though they would forgive her anytime soon. "Well, what do we have here?" A voice made her stop. It obviously belonged to the female blond. "I didn't know _your_ team was back in the village."

Mayu flinched. She knew the tone—blatant sarcasm. Ino did not acknowledge her as being on Team 7. The dark haired kunoichi sneaked a peak at the quiet one among the three. Judging from Hinata's expression, she had the same opinion. Mayu sighed wearily. "I was just leaving." Yasmine was probably _eating_ somewhere, anyway. She became walking forward again, but Sakura had suddenly appeared in front of her. Eyes growing wide at the speed, Mayu took several steps back. Had she gotten even faster? Sakura only grinned and moved forward, prompting the Ishikari back up again. She could go no further, though, seeing as how her back was against a wooden stump. Gritting her teeth, she noticed that Hinata and Ino had surrounded her as well. "What's this about?" she bit out.

"Oh, nothing really," Sakura said in a sweet voice. Mayu didn't buy it for a second. "It's just weird how you can possibly show your face after what you did to me. I admire your boldness, Mayu-_chan_!"

"Sakura-chan, you're being too nice!" Ino hissed, glaring. "Liars shouldn't be praised." The blond kunoichi crossed her arms. "I bet she's an enemy ninja, wanting to know our secrets."

"If I was, why would I possibly choose _her_ body to steal secrets?" Mayu's nostrils flared. Her question was met by a harsh slap to the face. Shocked and appalled, the kunoichi could only glare at the offender.

"Don't insult me." Sakura slowly put her hand back down.

The young Ishikari bowed her head. Her blue eyes were focused on the ground, forcing back tears that threatened to spill over. _"Seriously?"_ Mayu squeezed her eyes shut while clenching her fists. What had she done to deserve _bullying_? She never had the experience of it before, but several manga series told her all about it. It opened her eyes to the world of teenagers. For a time, she was actually afraid of entering high school because of it. The kunoichi did not know bullying first hand, but the signs were clear. Her head snapped up, eyes glaring in the Hyuga's direction. She bared her teeth at the girl. Hinata had the nerve to look startled. "I could expect this from Ino, but _you_, Hinata? I would have never guessed you would participate in something like this!" Mayu shouted. "Just where have your feelings gone?" The young Hyuga looked a bit guilty.

Another slap resounded.

Mayu nearly growled at Sakura. Her smacks were hard. They were seriously causing pain. "Hinata doesn't have to be nice to a faker like you." Her green eyes seemed to darken. "After all, no one likes to be deceived. Face it; you deserve everything that's coming."

"You hit me like that again-" The kunoichi cracked her knuckles. "-And me deceiving will be the _least_ of your problems."

"Why you-"

"My, my—isn't this an unusual sight?"

The new voice caused all four of the Leaf kunoichi to shift their gaze up. Standing on the same stump Mayu was pressed against was the foreigner. She smirked down at them from her position. The young Ishikari blinked in surprise. "Y-Yasmine—you're here!" she sputtered. Mayu was quite embarrassed to be found in such a situation. Well, at least it wasn't one of her teammates. Now _that_ would have been mortifying.

"_Eh, not exactly,"_ the foreigner spoke. Her narrowed brown eyes moved to the other three. "This is so out of character of them all. Seriously, Mayu, you messed up pretty bad. Kishimoto won't be as forgiving, ya know." Wait… Something was going on with her. It wasn't the same friendly voice as before. If it weren't for the face, Mayu would swear it was a different person all together—a sibling maybe.

"Just who the hell are you?" Ino questioned.

The foreigner squatted down, grinning maliciously. Both Hinata and Ino backed up. Ignoring their slightly frightened gazes, she tilted her head a bit. "My name is Yasume," she answered. "And I can't say I'm happy that you're bullying this girl. I don't take to kindly to those who pick on people this person likes… Well, besides that girly one."

"Who _are_ you?" Hinata repeated.

Yasume was in front of her face in a blink of an eye. The alter ego heard the faint gasp from the blond kunoichi, but her eyes bore into Hinata's pale ones. "I believe I just told you," she stated. The girl looked as if she could not move. "Really, I am surprised by all this OOC-ness. Hey, do you call your crush demon child then?" The Hyuga princess turned a shade of red. She was most likely both angry and embarrassed. Yasume pulled back. "Now, you and your sudden lackeys better leave before I lose it." Her sharp eyes turned in Sakura's direction.

"Oh yeah!" Ino took a step forward. "What are you going to do to _us_? You're not even a ninja!"

"I kicked Neji's ass, I think I can handle weaklings just fine," Yasume replied, shrugging. Miles away, said Hyuga began to sneeze violently.

"What'd you say?"

"That's enough. We're done here," Sakura turned. "It seems Mayu-chan has tricked something else into thinking she's an okay person. Whatever, I'm done for now. We'll settle things at the chuunin exam." The pink haired kunoichi walked away. Giving one last glare, Ino did the same followed closely by Hinata.

Once they were out of sight, Mayu heaved a sigh of relief. Her blue eyes then focused on the foreigner. Her demeanor had drastically changed since she last saw her. In fact, she had seen it in her fight with Hyuga Neji. One second, she was strong, and in the next second she was fast. It was all very strange. "Yasume…?" she repeated the name. The foreigner turned her attention to the kunoichi. Her eyes widen in surprise. "Don't tell me… You have dissociative identity disorder?" A blank look was given. Mayu blinked. It appeared this side wasn't as smart. "I guess you do…"

"Look, I've got no clue what you fucked up, but just know we got your back." Yasume winked at her.

"Thank you, but that's not necessary. I can handle this on my own," Mayu stated. The alter only scoffed.

"Trust me, I know a little something about bullying, and bullying amongst ninja is not something _anyone_ can handle on their own." She crossed her arms again. "Now, are you ready to tell us everything that happened while you were in Sakura's body?"

"Oh fine—now that Yasmine's my best friend, I guess I need to."

"What about me?"

"I have to learn to _tolerate_ you."

"Bitch."

* * *

Finished June 15, 2010

Bullying amongst kunoichi—_absurd_!

Next time: _La Familia_

I'm looking forward to your reviews.


	27. La Familia

_AH-CHOO!_

Uzumaki Naruto sneezed violently, causing spit and snot to shoot across the room. Tsunade scowled down at her paperwork, and then glared at the blond shinobi who was responsible for the sudden appearance of bodily fluid on the paper. He was busy wiping his face as his two teammates inched away from him. He sighed wearily, and then chuckled uneasily. "Don't mind that, Granny! I'm not sick at all!" The blond neglected to mention that his sensei, as a training method, forced him to stay under water for long periods of time. He was still cursing Kakashi for doing such a thing. His other teammates hadn't needed to do it! "So anyway, what's our mission this time?"

After clearing her throat, Tsunade slid the contaminated papers away from her. "Your mission is in the Hot Water Village. There have been sightings of a wild beast in the area. Not only is this beast scaring the locals, it is also eating cattle. The village wants this beast put down. Your mission is to take care of this beast." For a moment, the genin of Team 7 merely stared at her. "_Oh_, I suppose you want to know what it looks like…?" The Fifth chuckled a bit. "That's just it—no one knows!" The three fell out of place. "The villagers have only seen glimpses of the beast, and not one can give an adequate description. It is quite fast, which why they are hiring us to take care of the problem."

"Are you serious? How do we know what we're supposed to be _looking_ for?" Mayu inquired, crossing her arms.

"Well, every single description had one thing in common." Tsunade sat back in her seat. "The creature is white."

"White…? So it's abeno?" Naruto asked.

"That's _albino_, moron." Sasuke shook his head as he corrected him. The blond shinobi glared in his direction. "And what about its paw prints? How big is this thing?"

"There were no paw prints. The size of this animal is said to be huge. The bite marks in the carcasses can be the judge of that."

"Sounds dangerous." Mayu whistled.

"It's nothing my Leaf ninja can't handle; now you are dismissed."

Naruto, Sasuke, and Mayu bowed in respect before leaving the Hokage's office. All three ninja sighed. "Kakashi-sensei's so lucky he gets a cooler mission than this!" Naruto locked his fingers behind his head. "I can't believe we're stuck with animal control! Who know _how_ long this is gonna take!" His two teammates shrugged.

"There's not much we can do about the situation, though. Since Kakashi-sensei got better, he's the only one on this team to receive high-ranking missions." The kunoichi shrugged again as she walked. "The only thing we can do is get stronger on our own and surprise everyone at the chuunin exam."

"She's right, Naruto." Sasuke agreed, causing his teammates to look his way. "We'll have to continue our training while we're gone, so bring extra stuff just in case this takes longer than expected."

"Yes!" They replied in unison.

0~0

"So you're leaving _again_?"

"Yup, and this time we might be gone for weeks!"

Yasmine Dalton watched as her best friend and roommate continued to stuff numerous items in her bag. This was the fifth time since she had gotten here that Mayu had to leave the village on a mission. Honestly, things were quite boring without her. It didn't help that she hadn't seen_ any_ of the main side characters since that one time, and thanks to Yasume, the foreigner doubted they wanted to make friends. Being a friend to a ninja isn't all it cracked up to be, she thought. Yasmine crossed her arms. The kunoichi did not seem to be aware of the pout on her face, though. "I bet it's not that great of a mission again. You should hurry back."

"Yeah, but I can't control time, you know. We'll come back when we're finished." Mayu stood and placed the strap over her shoulder. Her blue eyes turned to Yasmine. "What about you? Are you going to be productive while I'm gone?" Her voice was teasing, causing the foreigner to glower. She knew exactly what the kunoichi was getting at. "You should try to make up with him. He _did_ take care of you, after all." Yasmine's shoulders tensed as she remembered the reunion between herself and her previous caretaker.

_Ga… Gaki…? You-_

_YOU SMELL LIKE BOOZE!_

Her shoulders hunched over. She felt a bit guilty about kicking the man in the crotch. He hadn't even got a sentence out. After all the trouble the Third had to go through to reunite them, Yasmine did not give a chance for a conversation and a tearful hug to occur. The womanly man had seemed to recognize her right away, too. However, he had made the mistake of going in for a warm embrace. Her nose had instantly caught whiff of the familiar, disgusting smell of alcohol. That type of stench could only come from someone who had drowned themselves in the stuff—someone like her uncle. Yasmine was ashamed to admit that she had a small flashback, and because of that, she had reacted without thinking.

Mayu gave the girl a pat on the shoulder as she made her way pass her. "Fine, fine," Yasmine grumbled. "I'll try to contain myself next time." The kunoichi gave her a look. Sighing, she amended what she said. "I mean I _will_ contain myself when I meet him… _today_!" For her correction, she received a satisfied nod from Mayu. She cheerfully gave a goodbye, and then left. Yasmine let out a groan of annoyance as she scratched her head. Since she had nothing better to do, meeting with her previous caretaker now instead of later was logical. Perhaps she could stop for lunch on the way. She did always want to try Ichiraku ramen.

Ten minutes later, Yasmine realized that she was very much lost. The Third had given her the man's address, hoping for them to reconcile. Apparently, he lived in the same place for all these years. However, the old man had neglected to tell her _how_ to get there. Didn't he realize that it had been nearly nine _years_ since she had last been in Konoha? Her memory wasn't _that_ great. Her eyes darted side to side, trying to find anything that looked familiar. That seemed to be impossible. Things looked so much different in the dark. The foreign clutched her stomach. "I'm so hungry!" Her wailing drew attention from the other villagers, yet Yasmine paid no mind to them. Arriving in _any_ village, people would stare at her. Apparently, she looked more foreigner than Mayu did.

She suddenly halted in mid walk. Her foot hovered over the ground as her nose pointed west. The foreigner closed her eyes and sniffed deeply. This, of course, gained Yasmine more odd looks. She shook her head and grinned goofily. She smelled something delicious! Following her nose, Yasmine turned around. Relying solely on her snout, she found herself standing outside of a restaurant. Because she did not know how to read the character, she did not know the name of the place, but it was most definitely a restaurant. The wonderful smells coming from inside were too good not to come from an eating place.

Yasmine stepped in only to sigh in slight disappointment. It was a _café_, not a restaurant. Still, food was being served, so the foreigner went further in. She found herself a seat—a booth, really—and within minutes, a waiter was there to take her order. "Uh…" Her eyes scanned over the menu. She then shifted her gaze to the waiter. "Could I have natto, rice balls, miso soup, noodles, sushi rice, dango, and yakisoba, please? Oh, and I also want bakudan—Deidara-sama's favorite!" The waiter's eyes were wide in shock. Yasmine mentally frowned. It wasn't her fault she only knew a few foods. And most of what she said came from ordering whatever Deidara would get. Really, she'd like whatever smelled so good, but she would take whatever she could get. Hopefully, they served all that.

**He's probably only looking that way because you ordered so much!**

"And… And what would you like to drink with your… meal?"

"_Um_… Surprise me!"

"Su… Surprise…?"

"Yeah—and you can do the same with however my meal is prepared, too. I don't mind what it looks like."

"… Right…"

He scribbled in his notepad before walking away. Yasmine bounced in her cushioned seat with a smile. Just thinking of all the tasty food she was going to get caused her to get excited and forget whatever it was she was _supposed_ to be doing. Her alter ego angrily asked where she was going to get money to pay for all the food. "Garfield-kun, of course!" She held out a stuffed tabby wallet. "Mayu left it for us. I better get a paying job soon, though. She won't be as nice in the future." Yasmine placed the wallet between the wall and herself, and then went back to daydreaming about the meal.

Time passed, and so the many dishes were placed in front of her. The rising steam is what snapped her out of her thoughts of ramen. Her brown eyes nearly sparkled at the sight. She almost did not here the waiter say he hoped she enjoyed the meal. The foreigner hastily grabbed chopsticks and split them apart. She twirled the wooden sticks between her fingers for a second. "Itadakimasu!" Yasmine was about to dig in, but that is when she felt eyes on her. That was weird, seeing as how she was the only one in this section. She turned her eyes. Sitting across from her booth was a woman. Her eyebrow was raised as her light brown eyes looked her way. If Yasmine's mouth wasn't already opening to consume food, then it _would_ have dropped open upon recognizing the kunoichi.

"_Ah_, don't mind me." She waved a hand in front of her face. "I just never have seen someone so serious about _food_. Are all foreigners like that?"

"Anko Mitarashi!" Yasmine almost pointed a finger in awe. The kunoichi narrowed her eyes in suspicion and asked how she knew of her. "Well, besides the fact that you're famous!" she gushed, clasping her hands together. "I am also Mayu's friend. She told me that you trained her!"

"Oh, I guess that would explain it…"

"Say, could I have your autograph? You're the first famous kunoichi I've come across!"

"No."

"That was such a quick response!"

Anko laughed heartily. "You know something, kid, I just might like you!" Yasmine flushed and fidgeted in her seat as the kunoichi continued to laugh. It's a dream come true, she thought. Many fans, mostly on forums, liked Anko. They would probably kill to be in the same position. She actually _might_ like her! "Hey, kid, you're _bleeding_!" Yasmine quickly moved her nose away from the food. As Anko exclaimed, blood was sliding down her nose. It finally dripped from her chin and splashed onto seat. "Holy crap! What's wrong with you?"

"_Ah_, this is nothing. I'm sure it's just a fangasm." Yasmine waved aside her concern. She wiped her nose with her napkin. "Anyway, how long were you sitting there? I don't see any food on your table. I didn't notice you come in." Anko looked a bit uneasy about her nonchalant attitude toward her previous flow of blood, but she shrugged it off.

"I don't think you would have noticed an earthquake the way you were drooling," she muttered. Anko then released a heavy sigh. "My date stood me up again… I'm just glad I didn't like him as much as…" The woman trailed off, her eyes wandering aimlessly away. The foreigner blinked and tilted her head to the side.

"Is that so? He's probably only jealous that you're more famous than he is." Yasmine said as though it was merely a statement. Anko chuckled again. "You want to eat with me? I don't mind sharing." The kunoichi shrugged, and then proceeded to slide herself into the seat opposite of Yasmine.

The two females talk and ate with each other, completely disregarding the time. Yasmine came to learn that Anko wasn't completely a homicidal maniac as others made her out to be. She was easygoing, somewhat nice, and smart, too. It came as quite the shock when finding out her hobby was tea ceremonies. She would have never thought the tomboyish kunoichi was into something like that! The kunoichi—she was good people. The only thing that bothered Yasmine about her was that she had to fight for the last stick of dango, and lost. Other than that, she was a great person. Anko had also mentioned how similar Yasmine was to Mayu. It seemed that they had a lot more in common than just the love of food. The kunoichi told her she was just a little more extreme than the young Ishikari. According to the older kunoichi, there were not grey areas to the foreigner—just black and white. Despite that, Anko did say that she enjoyed her company.

Yasmine stood up and stretched. "Well, it was nice talking to you, Anko-san!" The foreigner bowed politely as she shuffled out of the booth. She grabbed Garfield-kun from the seat, and then placed the appropriate amount of money on the table. The kunoichi stood up from the booth as well. "I got distracted from my original plan, so I'll go first." Yasmine turned and began walking away. She heard Anko chuckle again.

"If we ever meet again, kid, it'll be my treat—as long as I get most of the dango."

"Not a chance, Anko-san!" Yasmine turned her head and stuck her tongue out.

Once she was a few yards away from the café, the foreigner sighed heavily as if a weight was lifted from her shoulders. She then, unceremoniously, jumped into the air, totally disregarding the numerous looks she received for her outburst. "YAY!" Yasmine shot a victorious fist to the sky. She twirled on the balls of her foot, and clutched her fingers together. "I've never had a dream come true! Till the day that I found you!" Regardless of making a fool of herself, Yasmine sang her heart out. She was ecstatic. Having an encounter with Anko so soon had been fun. She had discovered something amazing. Mitarashi Anko was _in love_! Just who was the lucky—or unlucky—man who had stolen her heart? Well, it definitely wasn't the coward that didn't show up. _"But I do have to wonder what type of man this is."_

Her thoughts came to an abrupt halt when she collided, head first, into an innocent bystander. "Hey, bitch, watch where the fuck you're going!" Yasmine groaned as she rubbed both sore spots. Her bottom had taken a beating from the unyielding force of the ground. Her brown eyes slowly move up the figure of whoever she had run into. The female had sounded an awful lot like her alternate. A startled gasp escaped her lips as she stared into a glaring pair of darker brown eyes. "What the fuck are you staring at? Get the hell out of my way!" The foreigner rose to her feet, still watching the red haired teen in front of her.

"Ta… Tayuya-chan!" She pointed a surprised finger. The teen's face transformed in strained rage. Yasmine could practically feel her anger flare. Mayu had told her she was one of the people who joined the village after the failed attempt at war during the chuunin exam. Yasmine shifted her attention to the raging girl's companion. Tsuchi Kin was standing beside her, looking bewildered. The foreigner could barely believe her eyes. Kin had bangs and her hair was shorter than before! And there was a line of discolored skin under her eye. Both kunoichi wore Konoha headbands! Kin's was wrapped around her neck, while Tayuya's was snug around her head. Her odd headwear no longer was there.

"Don't talk like you fucking know me, shithead!"

As if they knew better, the civilians steered clear of the trio. "I… I apologize… It's just that I admired you because you're so much like Yasume." The foreigner ignored her inner self as she ranted how unalike she and the angry kunoichi were. "So if it's alright, I'll call you Tayuya-chan!"

"NO FUCKING WAY IN HELL IS IT ALRIGHT!"

"Tayu-chan, maybe?"

Before the kunoichi could explode, her companion placed a hand on her shoulder. "Calm down, Tayuya. Don't let her get to you." Tayuya seemed to deflate after Kin's soothing words. She turned her dark eyes to the foreigner. "How do you know her, anyway?" She was clearly suspicious. Yasmine shrugged her shoulders.

"I know you as well, Kin-san. Mayu told me about you two." Both girls flinched hearing the young Ishikari's name. Wow, her best friend hadn't been fooling when she said they had some rough encounters. Yasmine decided to change the subject. "She said you two were allowed to live here. That's so cool."

"There's nothing cool about it! I hate this shithole!" Tayuya crossed her arms.

"But don't you know? Annoying things tend to grow on you like mold, Tayu-chan."

"If you call me that a-fucking-gain, I will beat the living shit outta you." The two girls stared into each other's eyes. The younger looking innocently naïve, while the older one looking murderously contained. Yasmine tilted her head and opened her mouth.

"Call you what, Tayu-chan?"

The red head kunoichi practically roared before her fist came into contact with the foreigner's head. Yasmine plummeted to the ground, seemingly unconscious. Kin stepped in front her comrade, holding her back. "What are you, crazy? She's a civilian!"

"I warned her!" Tayuya struggled against Kin in order to finish the beating. "I fucking warned the bitch! Let me go, Kin! She deserves everything coming to her ass!"

"_Ow_, that hurt, you punk-ass bitch!"

Both kunoichi froze, and then turned their full attention to the rising foreigner. She was rubbing her head. An annoyed looked replaced the friendly smile the girl have previously shown. Her narrowed eyes seem to pierce their souls. Her entire demeanor had changed in less than a second. Before, her face had been relaxed and childlike. Now, however, it seemed as though her face now sported a permanent scowl. Her eye twitched as if she were half-crazed. Slowly, she lowered her arm, never lifting her gaze. Tayuya mentally shook her head, and then pushed Kin out of the way. "What the fuck did you just call me, shithead?" The kunoichi took a step forward. The twitching had stop, and the foreigner focused solely on her.

"You heard me, punk-ass _bitch_!"

Before Kin could wince—because she knew what was to come—Tayuya rammed her fist into the foreigner's cheek. The girl, however, did not falter. Instead she followed up with a right hook of her own. The two girls remained in these positions, glaring at each other. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity of looking back and forth between her teammate and the foreigner, the two took a few steps back from one another. The foreigner smirked. Blood ran down her chin from her mouth. Her lip was split near the edge. Kin was surprised to see appreciation in the foreigner's eyes. "You're unexpectedly fast." She wiped the blood away with the back of her hand. "What was that—three times in less than a second?" Kin was even more surprised when her teammate chuckled darkly.

"What about you, _eh_, bitch? I felt five strikes in total."

"You're just lucky I held back. How did you get so fast?"

"With my bitch-ass of a teammate, I can't help but to try to overcome her speed."

The foreigner nodded her head in understanding. Yasume grinned as she watched the former Sound kunoichi clutched her stomach with one hand. She had hit her there four times in their little battle. Tayuya—she was the likable type of bitch. Not only was she a good verbal sparring partner, she was also strong enough to take and accept punches. Yasume mentally winced, feeling the slight pain of the kunoichi's punch to her jaw. She then held out a fist of respect. "You're still a bitch, but you cool in my book."

"Same to you. I think I won't kill you the next time we fucking meet." Tayuya's knuckles met Yasume's own, both accepting and giving respect.

Their arms dropped at the same time. Yasume closed her eyes with a smirk, allowing her host to regain control. The foreigner looked delirious for a moment before honing in on Tayuya. "So now that that's taken care of, do you mind telling me where _Chigiri Park_ is, Tayuya-chan?" The grin was instantly wiped from the kunoichi's face, and Kin had to hold her teammate back again.

"Down the street, take a left!" The dark haired kunoichi exclaimed, getting very much annoyed by this confrontation. "Leave now while you're still breathing!" Yasmine smiled brightly before thanking her. She bowed, and then went on her way. Once she was far enough away, Kin finally released Tayuya.

"Damn her… Damn her to _hell_!" The kunoichi practically breathed fire. She rounded on her teammate. "And how the hell do you know where stuff is that I don't?" Kin scoffed lightly, and then moved around her fellow kunoichi. Tayuya had no choice but to follow.

"Unlike you, I want to be aware of my surrounds. I explore the village in my spare time."

The red head walked beside her. "Yeah the fuck right. That bitch-ass pansy you're living with probably showed you." Tayuya missed the angry flush on her teammate's cheeks. "But did you notice…?" Kin gave her a questioning look. "The way she changed, I mean. I've never seen anything like that. Yeah, there's some pretty fucked up, bi-polar people in the world, but she seemed to change _personalities_ in seconds.

"Yeah, I did… It was pretty strange. Even her expressions changed."

"Oh well…!" Tayuya crossed her arms. "Not our fucking problem." Kin hesitantly nodded her head in agreement.

She tried to ignore the shiver that went through her spine.

0~0

The young teen sank down in sitting position. Her discouraged eyes shifted back and forth several times before closing. She had found the park, alright. It was right where Kin had told her. Just across the street there was the apartment building in which she used to reside. The written address was still in her pocket. Yasmine sighed heavily, and then frowned. It was much harder than expected to walk up there and greet her former caretaker. Perhaps she did not want to lash out at him again on instinct. Perhaps she did not want to be greeted by the stench of an alcoholic. Or perhaps she was just plain nervous. Whatever the problem was, it prevented her from moving from her current position.

Yasmine sighed again, twiddling her thumbs. Watching them dance around each other appeased her nervousness somewhat. Meeting her former caretaker was more nerve racking than she had thought. She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to come up with a plan. She couldn't very well skip out and wait another day. Mayu would be most disappointed in her. It would be just like the time she tried to run away from a fight. Middle school had been hell and the biggest bully of them all seemed to be attracted to her. When she spoke when the kunoichi about it—back when they were still writing to one another—Mayu had replied with soothing, yet harsh words.

_You have to earn respect! You can't just scamper away, hiding!_

Back then, she hadn't cared about respect and all that. It was unimportant. Sure, she respected her parental unit, but that was only because she was old and still literally kicking. However, Mayu had been passionate in that certain letter, and so when that guy _challenged_ her again, he received more than he bargained for. Yasmine sighed again. This situation, although similar, was different. She couldn't just attack her former caretaker like she did Eric. Turns out, he had liked her a bit. With his busted lips, he had even given her a kiss on the cheek… the next day. The foreigner mentally shrugged. She had not been interested in such a relationship. What was the point of remembering that again…? Hell, she had forgotten already.

Springing her head back, she released a loud irritated groan to the sky as if it were to blame for her current dilemma. "Yaya-chan…?" Yasmine snapped her head back down, turning surprised eyes to the Hyuga clan's prodigy. He looked just as surprise to see her as she did him. "What are you doing here? And what happened to your _face_?" The foreigner stood as Neji came closer. She moved toward him as well.

"What am _I_ doing here? What are _you_ doing here?" She winced because she unconsciously touched her split lip. "_Oh_, Yasume got into a fight with a kunoichi." Yasmine blinked in surprise when the male Hyuga faltered in _his_ answer. His unique eyes slowly shifted over to the playground. Unconsciously, her eyes did the same. The foreigner tilted her head. She had been here a total of fifteen minutes, and yet she did not note the changes that happened to this place. The sandbox had turned into a dirt box. The flowerbed was in the process of wilting. The slide and swing set were beginning to rust. The only thing that had remained the same was the two giant trees that shaded the area.

"I…" Yasmine's eyes returned to Neji. His gaze was now focused on the ground. "After I started to remember you and our times together… I began to come here. Reflexively, I find myself here often."

"_Ah_… This was our meeting place," Yasmine murmured. The Hyuga returned his attention back to her. "Oh, I'm here to visit… that man." The foreigner wasn't yet ready to call him by his nickname. Neji raised a brow, clearly questioning her reasoning for being here instead of there. Realizing this, Yasmine sighed heavily. "I haven't gone in yet. I'm a bit nervous. I few days ago, I met him again, but I reacted without thinking, so…" Neji shook his head, smirking.

"You hit him, right?" Yasmine gave him a flat look. "Well, it's to be expected…" The smirk fell from his face. "Yasmine, after you left, he came to me, thinking I was the reason that you were gone. He tried to attack me that night."

"He wasn't wrong," she replied.

"Yes… but he cared for you… _immensely_. To go so far for you, he must still feel the same way." Yasmine sharply exhaled through her nose and turned her back to Neji. "Yaya-chan-" She looked over her shoulder. "You and he shared a connection, just like you and I. I know you don't want that bond to completely sever. You need to do this. I will come with you if you'd like." The foreigner shook her head.

"No, that's okay. I'll do it myself," Yasmine answered. She smiled lightly, and then turned to face him. "Neji Meji, you're such a good friend. I'm glad we met again after being separated. You're still so amazing." The Hyuga gave a genuine smile.

"Yasmine-"

"Even if the _out of character _way you're acting is making my eyes burn."

Neji's eye twitched.

0~0

Rubbing her palms together did not get rid of the sudden sweat. Here she stood, right outside the door of the apartment she used to live in. Yasmine was stunned to find her special stool still outside. She had been short as a chibi that Jano had bought it for her, so she could reach the doorknob. Surely, he should have gotten rid of it by now. Steadying herself, she gently rapped her knuckles against the door. Seconds later, her body tensed, sensing an approach. Her parental unit had begun to show her how to do it, but it was really Misao-sensei who had followed through with teaching her. Oh shoot—she still hadn't written to the Seta family, saying that she had made it to Konoha. She'd have to do it as _soon_ as she returned home.

The door slowly opened, causing the smell of the apartment to glide into her nose. Yasmine's nostrils flared at the smell. Cleaning products—she recognized it instantly. Years of cleaning for Theresa had that effect on her. The foreigner had to look up to see the person's face. Her eyes widen at the sight. A few days ago, the man had a scruffy look about him. His hair was tangled and unwashed. His eyes were bloodshot. His chin had jaw were covered with stubby hairs. Also, he had looked aggravated with a bottle of sake clenched in his hand. However, the man in front of her now was a little more than different. His hair was smooth and in a high ponytail. His surprised greenish black eyes seemed brighter than they were. Not to mention the fact that he had clearly shaved. The man looked very much like the one who had taken her in as a chibi—her _kaasan_.

"Ga-Gaki…!" The man was obviously not expecting to see her. His voice was choked up. It appeared as if tears would surface soon. "You're… here!" Yasmine warily took a step back, averting her gaze to the floor. This was a bit weird. Sawatari Jano—he was a man that was a bit weird. When he liked something or someone, he would act as though he didn't. Some would even call him unfriendly. However, Yasmine knew he showed his affection in a different way. Perhaps that is why she had warmed up to Deidara so quickly. He and Jano were similar in that way. The foreigner narrowed her eyes. Now, Jano seemed more open about his emotions. He looked as though he wanted to hug her tightly. The man cleared his throat, causing her gaze to return. "Please… will you come in?" He moved aside, allowing access.

Yasmine nodded her head, and then moved forward. She held her hands together in front of her. "Pardon the intrusion." Her brown eyes quickly took a look around. Everything was the same as she remembered. The foreigner walked over to the couch and sat. Jano came and sat on the opposite end of the black couch. Silenced ensued. They had been so close before. This was… just bad. Reuniting with Neji—after the fight—wasn't _this_ awkward. She suppose she should begin. After all, it was her fault they separated on a bad note… kinda. "Jano-san," she began. "I am sorry for my rude behavior before. Your stench overwhelmed me and I could not control myself."

Jano winced. She hadn't meant to insult him. She had only stated facts. However, Deidara-sama did warn her of a thing called tact. Mentally, Yasmine shrugged. She'd apologize later. "I… The Third told me about what happened with your uncle." The man glowered at the ground as if he had seen her uncle's drunken face. "I am terribly sorry I had become something you had learned to hate, which is why-" He turned his eyes to her. Yasmine looked back, unblinking. Jano looked away again. "-Which is why I poured everything down the sink. I firmly decided to turn my life around. I'm sorry you had to see me like that, Gaki. I know I changed over the years, but I hope to… become as close as we were."

"You don't have to change yourself to please me, Jano-san. It was a mistake when I attacked you. I'm ashamed to admit that I had a flashback of my uncle when I smelled alcohol. It was merely a reaction. It won't happen again. I've always liked Jano-san, and a drinking problem won't change that." Yasmine shifted her eyes to him. He had returned his eyes to her as well. The foreigner smiled. She rather liked the emotional Jano. In the past, she had to think hard when trying to figure out how the man felt. But now, he wore his heart on his sleeve. He looked as if he wanted to explode in happiness. "However, you must stop drinking excessively. The Hokage told _me_ that he demoted you because of it. You were my superhero… Don't let that change."

Jano twitched, looking as though he was holding himself back. Yasmine tilted her head to the side, confused. The feminine man suddenly lunged at her, causing her eyes to expand to comical proportions. He squeezed her body tightly, nearly sobbing. The foreigner smiled nervously before giving a comforting pat to his back. "You've gotten so… _cute_!" Yasmine almost felt her back crack. "I won't let you leave again!"

"_I suppose I'll forgive this out of character-ness since he, too, is an original character."_

0~0

The two shinobi released a heavy sigh as their bodies sunk down into the water of the hot spring. They had traveled nonstop to get to this village. A hot spring is just what their tired bodies needed. They had to thank their self-proclaimed leader for picking this hotel over the others. It had taken longer than expected to get here because the map had been forgotten. The three young ninja had blamed this careless mistake on one another, so the entire trip consisted of arguments, backbiting, and random instances of violence. By the time they had reached the Hot Water Village, the three were practically covered in bruises—scratches, too.

"_AH_! If we ever go on vacation, this is the spot I want to be!" Naruto leaned against the edge of the spring, elbows keeping him stable. His teammate didn't say a word as he submerged himself up to his nose. The door suddenly slid open, causing the blond shinobi to turn his head. They had arrived in the village in the early morning. No one should really be up at this hour. Feeling his mouth drop, Naruto could only stare. Flushing, he dropped down until only his head was visible. Sasuke had nearly drowned when he noticed the person stepping in. "What the _heck_, Mayu?"

The kunoichi of Team 7 shrugged her bare shoulders before slipping into the spring. She took no notice of the panicked looks exchanged between her male teammates. Honestly, they shouldn't have been so surprised. Mayu was oddly nonchalant about things like this. Sure the bath was unisex, but _jeez_…! A little decency would be _nice_! Sasuke glared at the ignorant girl as he finished coughing out the rest of the spring water from his throat. She wore a towel around her body, but it still came as a shock to see her with so little clothing on. The Ishikari did not seem to mind their partially covered bodies… Sasuke mentally sighed. He still needed to get used to this side of his teammate. Otherwise, he would die from choking on water.

"So I figured out a game plan," Mayu announced, momentarily distracting the two shinobi of her lack of clothing. "I heard from the villagers that this thing only comes out at night, sooo all we have to do is stake out at night. As to not endanger the rest of the cattle, we'll hide them."

"If we hide them, how are we supposed to lure the beast in?"

"That's easy, Sasuke! Naruto will use clones and transform into the animals—the perfect bait!"

"WHAT?" Obviously the blond did not agree with that plan. "Why do _I_ have to be the bait?" he complained. "The bait is usually the one to get hurt!"

"Don't be silly, Naruto. Your real self with be in hiding with Sasuke and I," Mayu corrected. "Sasuke will use his Sharingan to figure out what the thing actually looks like, since it's faster than what the natural eye can see." Naruto crossed his arms, pouting. "With any luck, we could be returning to the Leaf tomorrow morning!"

"Something tells me it's not going to be as easy as you make it sound," Sasuke muttered. "Especially if Naruto's the bait."

"HEY!"

0~0

Mayu wanted to scream—seriously scream and pull her hair out in frustration. However, she could do no such thing at the moment. She and Sasuke were chasing after their idiotic teammate. Not only did he replace himself with a clone—causing his teammates to believe that he was beside them the entire time—but he also managed to tie a thick rope to the fleeing beast… with himself attached. His pained shouts and yells filled her ears as she ran. The blond was getting dragged through the forest. There was no doubt that his head hit a couple of tree roots on the way. "Stupid, stupid Naruto!" She clenched her teeth, propelling herself from a tree branch. Her blue eyes took a glance in her other teammate's direction. "This is all your fault, Sasuke!"

"My _fault_?" His tone was incredulous. "How is it my fault that moron got tangled up?"

"I can still-_OW_-hear-OH SHIT, _OW_-you guys! _OW_! That was a rock… That was _definitely_ a rock!"

Ignoring their teammate's cries of pain, the two glared at one another from the corner of their eyes. "I'm just saying that if you hadn't said what you said this morning in the hot spring, Naruto wouldn't have gotten the bright idea to try and capture the beast!" Sasuke turned his head, scowling. "Anyway, you have to get in front of it!"

"Why do I have to get in front of it?"

"_I'm_ too pretty to get all scratched up! You're a close second, though." Sasuke nearly growled at his kunoichi teammate. Nevertheless, he gathered chakra in his feet, shooting him forward quickly. He flipped and landed a tree trunk, and then dropped to the ground. The white beast was right in front of him. Startled, the animal skidded to a halt as Sasuke took out a kunai. The shinobi knitted his eyebrows in confusion. The animal looked frantic and afraid.

"_It's a bear…?"_ Sasuke slowly moved towards the beast. The large mammal roared in protest at the movement, and then charged. However, it did not get very far. Quicker than a blink, a rope was placed over its head. Something launched from the trees. The Uchiha instinctively caught it with his hand. It was the end of the rope. He quickly jumped up, maneuvering over a tree branch. The beast snarled as he was lifted up somewhat from the ground. He wouldn't die, but he was relatively immobile. They still have to worry about swinging claws, though. Sasuke clung to the tree branch using his legs. Ignoring the growling, he tied a sturdy knot under the branch. Only after making sure it wouldn't break or unravel did he drop down. "It's painted white," he told his teammates, whom had now come out of hiding. Sasuke had to stop himself from rolling his eyes.

"Why would someone paint a bear?" Naruto scratched his head, looking confused. "I don't get it. How could anyone even get that close to it?" The blond seemed to ignore the injuries he had acquired due to tangling with the bear. Mayu shrugged from her place beside Sasuke. "Anyway, let's deal with the problem and go back. My body's killing me!" The Uchiha stepped forward to do just that, but Mayu held out her arm, stopping him.

"Hold on a minute," she said. "This is a little too bizarre for my taste. And shut up, Sasuke." The kunoichi snapped before the Uchiha could make a smartass comment. "This bear has been trained." She crossed her arms and frowned. "I have no doubt about that. After a few moments, it calmed down after the rope was tied." True to her word, the painted white bear seemed about as harmless as a teddy… or a drunken man. It was scratching its bottom and looking quite bored for a fierce animal. Both Naruto and Sasuke sweated at the sight, each producing flat looks. "I think we should let it go and follow it back to wherever it came from…"

"Oh, come on! Do we really have to know the origin?" Naruto rubbed his head with both hands. He stopped, looking at his teammates. They were giving him surprised looks. "What? Oh, _please_! I'm not as stupid as you guys think! I know what words mean!"

Mayu cleared her throat. "Anywho, this is now our plan. My gut is telling me there's something bigger going on." She uncrossed her arms, and then jumped up. Sasuke scoffed.

"You're just being paranoid." He, too, jumped, landing beside her. "But whatever, it's better than being bored." The young Uchiha flicked his wrist, embedding the kunai in the branch of the tree. The rope snapped, setting the white bear free. Naruto jumped onto the tree branch right before the bear could focus on him. He glared at his two nonchalant teammates.

"Jackasses," he hissed. Mayu only held a finger to her lips. The bear looked side to side, and then took off again. After a moment or two, the kunoichi nodded her head and the pursuit was on.

The team remained a good distance away from the swift animal. The trio had been following the not-so-wild beast for nearly ten minutes now. Throughout the short journey, Mayu continued to complain about the Energizer Bunny and its long, lost cousin, the bear. However, her teammates did not catch her references so they outright ignored her. Finally, the bear stopped running, slowing down to a walk pace. The three ninja also lowered their speed. The animal entered a cave, causing the group to halt for a moment. They jumped from the tree branches and landed near the entrance. It was pretty much pitch black inside the cave.

The three shifted uneasily on their feet. It was night, but at least the moon had stars had lit a path for them. In the cave, they did not have that luxury. "I don't suppose any of you have a light of some sort?" Mayu was meant with blank looks. "Oh darn—guess we're going to have to hold on to each other." The two boys replied in unison.

"You're in the middle."

"Seriously, you guys, if you weren't so sensitive about your sexuality, then you wouldn't mind holding on to each other." The kunoichi received annoyed glares. "Just keep your hands on the walls of the cave." She lightly touched her teammates' hands before they grasped hers. The team entered the cavern, slowly at first, and then gradually they walked normally. "Ah, there's a light up ahead." Mayu pointed out the obvious after walking for a bit.

"It looks like candle light," murmured Sasuke.

They entered a bigger area of the cave. However, it had three passageways to enter. "_Eh_…? Should we split up?" Naruto muttered, eyeing each hole.

"No, that could be dangerous at this point. We don't know what's going on, so it's best to stick together.

"Yeah, Naruto, don't you want horror movies?" Mayu asked. "Once the group splits up, the killer strikes them down one by one!" Sasuke rolled his eyes, while Naruto genuinely looked afraid.

"Don't put silly ideas in his head, Mayu. We're going that way," Sasuke pointed. The passageway to the left was the only one with the candle above the entrance. "Let's go."

The passageway led them down a long narrower path. The path went up. The path went down. The path even seemed to go in circles for awhile. Naruto had complained about dizziness several times. Finally, the path became wider again. Sasuke halted, causing his teammates to stop behind him. Each of them heard a very deep, somewhat angry voice. The voice actually seemed to growl. "I cannot believe you have nothing to show tonight! Do you realize how hungry I am?" The voice actually made the three genin tense. "I'm barely surviving on what you're getting, but tonight you have nothing? You're useless!" A snarl answered the voice. "Don't give me that! You're faster than any of those villagers can move!" Silence followed, and then a roar. "THEY FOLLOWED YOU?"

The ninja instantly went rigid. The voice had become scarier. The two behind the Uchiha exchanged looks, gulping. Naruto and Mayu then shoved Sasuke forward, causing him to fall into the room. _"Damn you guys…"_ The young Uchiha slowly lifted his eyes. Ice blue eyes stared back at him. The mouth opened and snarled. If Sasuke hadn't been so cool, then it would have definitely called out to his mother. However, the young Uchiha was cooler than most, so he slowly lifted himself off the ground. Though, despite being as cool as he was, Sasuke could not help the nervous chuckle that erupted from his lips. The tiger had been bigger than most—much bigger than the ones in the _Forest of Death_. "Hey, excuse me while I go… kill my teammates." The Uchiha zipped out of the line of vision of the growling tiger.

However, before he could run back to safety—the tunnel was much too small for the tiger's massive form—he felt himself being pulled back. The tiger's teeth had grabbed the back of his shirt. He would definitely need a new one now. He was thrown away security of the tunnel. Wincing in slight pain, Sasuke looked around for another escape route. His eyes only found metal bars, preventing escape. "Who are you?" The voice had been coming from the tiger the entire time! "Speak, human!"

"_A summon…? What's it doing here?"_ The beast stepped forward, snapping him out of his thoughts. "U… Uchiha Sasuke—a ninja of the Leaf Village." Although, it was fairly dark, Sasuke could still see the white fur of the beast—definitely not painted. Jagged stripes stretched across its back. The summoned creature did not respond, almost as if it was contemplating something. The male feline suddenly chuckled.

"Uchiha, huh…?" His tail moved into the darkness of the tunnel. Quick as lightning, his teammates were thrown right in front him. Sasuke would have kicked their backs if they weren't already groaning in pain. "Are these your comrades?" The Uchiha snorted.

"Unfortunately…"

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?"

"Mizu…" Mayu stared wide-eyed at the beast. Her teammates stared at her in surprise. She was thinking of water in this type of situation? Normally, one would be afraid of the sharp, pointy teeth. "Mizuiro…" Her voice came out in a shudder. Then she hastily crawled over to the tiger. Naruto and Sasuke could only stare in horror when her arms wrapped around the beast's neck. The tiger seemed equally shocked by her sudden display of affection. "Mizuiro…! It's so good to see you again!" The summoned creature did not move for a moment, and then wrapped his front leg around the kunoichi, careful not to harm her with its claws.

"What… the… hell…?" Naruto asked slowly.

The embrace between feline and human abruptly came to a halt. Mayu turned her blue eyes to her confused looking teammates. "This is Mizuiro—my uncle's feline partner! You remember me telling you about him!" The shinobi exchanged a blank look, but the kunoichi ignored them for a moment. "What are you doing here, Mizuiro? Where's my uncle?" The large white tiger growled.

"I do not know," he answered. "I know that he is somewhere near. However, we were separated a few weeks ago. He hasn't released me, so I know he is somewhere where he cannot summon me again to come to his aid."

"His aide? Why would he need it? What happened?" Mayu questioned.

"In case you haven't noticed, I am locked behind bars with no way out," Mizuiro stated. "The two of us were following a lead on the criminal organization known as Akatsuki. We happened upon this old hideout. The fool fell into a trap hole. Somehow I was knocked out and put in here." The atmosphere instantly shifted and the white tiger recognized that it was because of the three young ninja in front of him. "What is it?"

"_Um_… Why is uncle chasing Akatsuki?"

"I don't remember… or I wasn't listening—can't remember which," Mizuiro stated. He seemed to shrug. The three humans produced flat looks. "I cannot hope to break these bars myself. My body is weak from lack of nutrition. This buffoon-" The giant feline gestured to the bear. "-has been trying to feed me, but he only brings little meat."

"I don't understand why he's painted white."

"Whoever has us captured has a bit of a white fetish. This bear is one of his pets," Mizuiro replied to Mayu. "I have not seen a face, but he sounds psychotic from the bear's description of him."

"_Hm_… That explains why the cattle problem," Sasuke muttered. "Guess that means the mission has changed, huh?"

"You better believe it, Sasuke!" Mayu stood up and faced her teammates. "And the first thing we're gonna do is bust Mizuiro outta this prison. Whoever this guy is, he's strong enough to keep my uncle contained, so we'll need all the help we can get. I hope you guys are up for a fight."

Her words were met with smirks.

0~0

Yuudai was not a happy man at the moment. He crossed his arms and pouted. He walked back and forth. Every so often, he would look at the screen. "Leaf brats…!" He bit a thumbnail, trying not to hiss. "What are _they_ doing here?" He shook his head back and forth several times, shaking his long pale blue hair. "No! They'll ruin everything!" His green eyes shifted over to the chained up man in the corner. He smiled cruelly. "And I was just about to the point of having fun, too!" The tall, burly man nearly strutted over to his captive. He squatted down to the man's eye level, even though his eyes were covered. Yuudai roughly gripped his captive chin. "No matter, I'll take care of them, and then we'll get started," he told the younger male. Yuudai stood up again. "I've waited _weeks_ for your will to break, and there is no way a bunch of brats is going to ruin this for me!"

He walked over to the screen again, focusing on the three. He tapped perfectly manicured hands to his painted lips. The man smirked and narrowed his eyes. Yuudai snapped his fingers. A painted white deer trotted over to the man. "Fetch me my entertainment cloths, will you?" The deer bowed its head, and then left again. A painted white snake slithered up the man's leg. Yuudai fondly stroked the head. "This might be slightly less fun than what I'm going to do with my captive. Getting rid of a bunch of nosy kids might get me high enough." He turned his green eyes to the unmoving man again. "Even if you do resist me this time, I won't stop!"

Yuudai rubbed his palms together, chuckling evilly.

* * *

Finished July 28, 2010

I was originally going to add more, but _nah_…!

Next time: _Rise of the_ _Legendary: Raschitsu_

I'm looking forward to your reviews!


	28. Rise of the Legendary, Rachitsu

"There are so many rooms," Uchiha Sasuke murmured as he walked beside his teammates. They nodded their heads in agreement. At the moment, the three genin were following the large white tiger down a dark path. The humans and feline passed many openings yet did not go in. They had been moving for fifteen minutes. "Is this really a hideout of Akatsuki?" His eyes darted to the side, looking into another dark room. "Why would they need so many?"

"This place gives me the creeps," Naruto muttered, trying to stick close to the fire bearer. Mayu nodded in agreement, gripping the stick that lit the path. "How much longer, Mizuzu?" The white tiger instantly halted. He slowly turned his gaze to the blond shinobi.

"Naruto-kun," he said.

"What?"

"If you call me that again, I will snap your neck with my fangs. Do you understand?" The blond _eeped_ quietly, hiding behind his kunoichi teammate. "Good." Mizuiro continued his pace as Sasuke rolled his eyes.

After a few moments of silence, the white tiger stopped again. His body seemed to tremble. In fact, the fierce feline took a couple steps back, causing the three to move to the side. "Huh? What's wrong?" Mayu moved forward. Her nose twitched a bit. "Oh… It really stinks down there." The kunoichi pointed. "Mizuiro can't handle the stench."

"What's so bad about it? I can't smell anything."

"Of course not—you are only human, Sasuke-kun. There is a room up ahead that will cover up Morino's scent if I were to walk pass it." Mizuiro backed up some more, ignoring the young Uchiha's scowl. "You three go on ahead. I will find a way out. I trust you will able to find your uncle on your own, Mayu." The kunoichi nodded her head. "If you continue, without turning, you should make it to the trapdoor he fell in. Be sure that you don't make the same mistake. Good luck." Mayu nodded her head again, taking the giant feline's words to heart. There was no point in everyone being trapped in this mazelike place. The massive white tiger turned and began to walk in the opposite direction.

Mayu unconsciously nodded her head before continuing on the path. Sasuke and Naruto exchanged a look before following after the young kunoichi. The Uchiha noticed the way Mayu's fingers clenched the stick she was holding. The thought of reuniting with the last of her family must be putting her on the edge. His dark eyes averted, briefly wondering what it would feel like, knowing he was heading for his brother. Sasuke shook his head, scowling. This was no time to be thinking of himself. Right now, the focus was on Mayu's uncle. "Look…! I see the door!" Mayu exclaimed. She stopped, causing her teammates to stop beside her. Just as she said, a trapdoor was positioned in front of them. "How could my uncle have missed this?"

"Maybe he didn't have a light?" Naruto suggested.

"Maybe…" Mayu murmured. "I guess he wouldn't need one. Mizuiro can see just fine in the dark. The smell must have really affected his other senses."

"So are we walking pass it?" Sasuke questioned. "We could potentially reach your uncle faster."

"Yeah, but we can also potentially become trapped like uncle." The kunoichi backed up a bit before running and jumping over the door. "We'll continue this way. Maybe we'll find a clue." She turned her head her teammates. "Let's go." Naruto and Sasuke performed the same actions.

The team continued forward. They finally came to another room. There were two doors. "Is this really a cave?" Naruto deadpanned. The blond went over to the right door, reaching for its handle. Alarmed, Mayu called out to him, halting his advances. "What?" He turned around, confused. The kunoichi scrunched up her face.

"That is the way to a very smelly place. It is what messed up Mizuiro's senses."

"What's the smell, then?" Naruto shrugged, moving away from the door.

"Dung." Her two teammates blinked at her response. "What? I'm not kidding. This guy keeps a lot of animals, I guess."

Naruto sighed, and then reached for the other door's handle. "Then we'll take this one," he stated, turning the knob and pushing the door open. The blond shinobi entered the new room, closely followed by his teammates. Using the light from Mayu to see, the team of three frowned. There were a total of four doors. "Looks like we're going to have to split up." The kunoichi nodded in agreement.

"Even though I don't want to, we have to," she said. "Just to be safe, we should all have someone with us for as a lookout. Naruto, hold this and create three shadow clones." Understanding what Mayu was getting at, the blond shinobi complied with her request. Soon, a total of four three clones appeared. "Each of us will take a clone into a room. We'll meet back here in fifteen minutes."

"Why fifteen minutes?" Sasuke asked.

"I don't want us to be separated for _too_ long."

The shinobi agreed with her logic, so they positioned themselves in front of the doors. Once more, Mayu reminded them of the time limit. Sasuke almost rolled his eyes. Mayu was being overly paranoid about the situation. But he guessed that was normal. The last member of her family was somewhere in this place. The young Uchiha opened the door, sensing that the clone was behind him. The fire it held lit the room. Shadows danced across the walls. "Stay," he told the clone. The copy of his friend and teammate frowned before showing his middle finger.

"_Eff_ you, Sasuke! I'm not a dog!"

The Uchiha almost chuckled. He focused his eyes on the room now. There was a bed against the wall. There was also a bookshelf, with no books, and a desk. At some point, someone resided here. From this assumption, he could guess that the rooms his teammates had gone into were also bedrooms. _"Just how many people are in the organization?"_ Sasuke narrowed his eyes, stopping at the foot of the bed. Perhaps he would find something that will give more information on Akatsuki. He hoped so. Not knowing anything about the organization was dangerous. He did not like the fact that his brother wanted Naruto. He hated it even more because of the fact that the purpose for wanting him was not clear.

Sasuke touched the mattress. Of course it was cold. Who knew how long someone had last slept here. Without another thought, the shinobi removed the mattress from its springs. His dark eyes widen at what he saw. "Nothing…" He clenched his teeth. Snickering was heard, causing Sasuke to glare. He was about to throw something, yet something stopped him. Beyond the laughing blond, he spotted a darkened picture frame on the wall. Sasuke walked toward the far wall, reaching for the circular frame. He could not see the picture. Someone had painted it black. He examined it in his hand. Whoever it was that painted it was a dumbass. The picture itself wasn't covered, just the glass. Rolling his eyes, Sasuke opened the back. Something fell to the ground. Frowning, the young Uchiha felt along the ground for whatever it was. Several times, his fingers touched bugs—alive and dead. Grimacing, Sasuke finally touched a cold metal. From the feel of it, he guessed that the mystery item was some type of chain.

He stood up and turned. Sasuke held it up to the light of the fire. It was a silver chain—worn around the neck—and attached to it was a small black key. The young ninja squinted. There was a symbol of some sorts on the base of the key. However, he could not see it clearly in this light. "Must be valuable if someone felt the need to hide it." Sasuke pocketed the item, and then turned his eyes to the frame again. He had yet to see the picture. He removed the picture and set the frame back on the wall. However, before he could hope to gaze at the picture, a shout entered his ears. Seconds later, the clone popped out of existence, causing the room to go pitch black. "Naruto…!" Sasuke placed the picture in his pocket before leaving the room.

0~0

Mayu's blue eyes scanned the room from behind the protection of the Naruto clone. Once she deemed it okay, she stepped to his side. The kunoichi tapped the clone on the shoulder, silently telling him to stay put. In the current position, he illuminated the entire room. She went over to the far wall. The room itself was bare, but since it was Akatsuki, then there must be some type of secret compartment. How, her palms and fingers only felt the same thing—the cave wall.

Sighing heavily, the kunoichi returned her arm to her side. The room was pretty much useless. _"Look like Akatsuki really cleared outta here."_ She turned, preparing to leave the room. However, a noise entered her ears. Her blue eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Footsteps…?" She completely closed her eyes, opening her ears to the new sound. The steps were slow and almost stealth like. Mayu shook her head. It was most likely Naruto. Ever since she had told him his movements were loud, he had been working on it. Unfortunately, the blond didn't get the hang of it yet. She almost chuckled at the thought.

"_Oi_, Mayu…!" The clone grabbed her attention. His blue eyes were focused on the ceiling. His finger pointed up as well. "There's something there." Her gaze concentrated on the spot. She squinted, trying to decipher what it was from her position. The clone snickered at her. "Need a boost?" Mayu rolled her eyes and stepped beside the clone. He knelt down for her. The kunoichi quickly climbed up his body, balancing on the clone's shoulders. Slowly and hesitantly, the Naruto clone stood up, holding on to one of Mayu's ankles.

Once she was sure that she was completely balanced, Mayu shifted back to the spot the clone had pointed out. Her hands reached up, feeling across the ceiling in search of what she had seen. Her fingers found the item. It felt like… a book. From the feel of it, it was small. The book couldn't be any bigger than a full grown male's hand. It was stuck to the ceiling by use of tape. _"Masking tape…?" _Mayu ripped the book from the ceiling. _"Whoever did this didn't want anyone to find it…" _She pulled the tape off the book and let it fall from her hand. The cover of the book was black. There was no title. The kunoichi's eyebrows knitted together. "Should I open this?" She swallowed her nervousness. She _had_ to open it. Whatever was in it could contain information about Akatsuki. Nodding her head, she lifted the cover.

Her blue eyes moved across the page only for a second before realizing that it was not characters she was used to see. Rather, it was characters that were drilled into her head as a child. Mayu's lips parted as she read the writing. Her hands trembled as her eyes widen. Pure shock etched across her face. She nearly lost her grip on the book. She recognized the handwriting. It was one of the few things he had not been perfect at. _"Itachi… Why is this?"_ Before she could read further, a shout echoed, causing her to flinch. A split second later, the clone disappeared right from under her, taking the light with it. Yelping, Mayu fell to the ground and landed on her back.

She stayed sprawled on the ground, in the dark, for a few seconds. "_Ow_…" She finally released a groan of pain. Mayu slowly cracked her eyes open as she sat up. With her free hand, she rubbed her back. "What the heck happened? Naruto…" she murmured, slowing standing. The door suddenly slammed open, causing Mayu to snap her head in the direction of the entrance. "Sasuke…!"

"Mayu, something happened to our idiot!" The young Uchiha moved into the room. The kunoichi quickly tucked the book into her shirt before he reached her. "I've already checked the room he was in and there were signs of struggle. He went and got kidnapped!" Throughout his little heads-up, Mayu continued to hear something other than his voice. Sasuke was about to continue, yet Mayu covered his lips with her palm.

"_Shh_…!" she hushed him. "You hear that…?" Sasuke's eyebrows furrowed, and then his eyes darted around the room. There appeared to be some type of beeping noise. It was faint, barely audible. Slowly their eyes moved up. On the ceiling was glowing, red numbers. "Is that…?"

"Nine minutes and four seconds…" Sasuke murmured, frowning. "What could-" That is when their eyes met. In unison, the two ninja showed their horrified expression.

"A time bomb…?"

"We've got to find Naruto fast!" Sasuke exclaimed. "Let's go!"

"Hold on a second. I'll summon Nana since she knows Naruto's scent well." The kunoichi bit her thumb and performed the necessary hand signs. "**Ninja Art: Summoning Jutsu**!" She slapped the ground underneath her. With a burst of smoke, the ninja feline appeared. "Nana, something happened to Naruto. We need you to track him." The black leopard nodded its head, and then moved to the entrance. "Oh yeah, and we only have nine until this place goes _boom_, so I suggest you put a move on it." Nana turned and seemed to glare at her partner. Mayu rubbed the back of head nervously. The feline growled, and then took off. "Sasuke, get track of time!"

"Got it, now let's go…!"

Within a few minutes, the three reached a rather large room. However, what greeted them was the sight of their teammate flying back. Their arms reached out and caught the blond. They were all sent to the ground, though. "Naruto!" Mayu helped him stand. "What happened?"

"This guy grabbed me from behind! He put me in a bag and dragged me here!" Naruto turned his attention to the far side of the room, causing his teammates to do the same. There was a muscular man, standing with a smirk on his face. He had long pale blue hair, green eyes that matched the color of his painted lips. The man donned black and white leather pieces of clothing. There was a whip in his hand. Surrounding him were all types of animals, yet not one was the same. All of the creatures were white. Upon closer inspection, though, they were not albino. There were merely painted, much like the bear had been. It was an eerie sight to see. However, that was most likely due to the glowing screens the man and animals were standing next to. "That guy… There's something weird about him…" Naruto remarked.

"Greetings… My name is Yuudai," the man announced.

"I don't care _what_ your name is!" Mayu shouted. "Are you the one who has my relative?"

The man blinked in surprised. He scrutinized the young kunoichi from afar. Yuudai chuckled lightly. "Actually, there is a resemblance between the two of you." His green eyes shifted to the side. "Reveal our guest." Following orders, the white donkey moved from its point. The genin turned their attention again. What they saw was a man. His wrists were shackled to the wall. His clothes were torn and his feet were uncovered. Mayu sharply inhaled. She felt her eyes prick with welling tears.

"What the hell did you do to him?" she practically snarled. Sasuke placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Calm down! We only have seven minutes left!" he told her.

"It's his fault, really." Yuudai scoffed. He smirked, and then clasped his hands together. "Such a strong, dashing man—he was too much for me when I met him… However, over time… he became weaker. Now there's nothing to stop me from having him." Hateful green eyes focused on the three genin again. "Nothing except you three, of course. I'll deal with you now."

"Just try to jackass!" Mayu ran forward, fully intending to give him hell.

"Wait a minute, Mayu!" Naruto called after his teammate. It was too late, though. The kunoichi was too far gone. He and Sasuke watched the kunoichi run right into an invisible force before she was propelled back to them. Her body slid to a stop in front of the young shinobi. "That's what I was trying to say! After I cut myself out of the bag, I tried to take care of him myself. But… I couldn't even touch him."

"A barrier…?" Mayu murmured.

"I think that's what it is," Sasuke said. His two teammates turned their eyes to the Uchiha. He had activated his advanced bloodline. "His chakra is covering that half of the room. There are no openings!"

"Those are quite the eyes, Uchiha-san," Yuudai complimented. "But that's not the only thing I can do!"

To Sasuke's surprised, the barrier of chakra became to expand and stretch out, forming into beams. His eyes widen as these rays struck down his ignorant teammates. "They can't even feel it coming!" The beams retracted back into a full barrier. His eyes trained on the man, who was staring back at him with a smirk. His teammates, complaining, stood from the ground. Sasuke gave a smirk of his own. "Try that again and see what happens," he taunted.

"Why you little ingrate…!" Yuudai nearly hissed. Once again, the barrier prepared to attack. This time, it headed his way. "Die…!" To his surprise, however, the boy did not try to dodge his attack even though he could see it. Instead, he rushed forward, meeting the attack head on. "Huh…? You foolish boy!" However, a split second before impact, the young male rotated on the heel of his foot, swiftly evading the beams by a hair. He continued to move forward, reaching in his pouch for a kunai. The weapon was flung toward his person. Yuudai could only stare in shock as the projectile pierced his flesh.

"Naruto, Mayu, attack now!" Sasuke called to his teammates. The two dashed forward on his command, but the barrier had been put back up. "No, never mind! It's too late!" The Uchiha skid to a stop right in front of the barrier. His nose was mere inches away. He smirked at the man behind the barrier. "You're not a strong opponent, after all, Yuudai-san." Sasuke motioned for his teammates to come closer. "This is not an absolute defense. To eyes like mine, this is pretty much useless. I could take you all by myself. How boring…"

"Shut the fuck up, little bitch," Yuudai retorted. He seemed to ignore the blood that gushed from the wound on his cheek. The kunai that had hit him had been impaled in the wall behind him. "I'll fuck you until you love me." At that, the entire room seemed to freeze. Sasuke blinked, mouth opening and closing in surprise.

"Wha… What the hell?" he gasped.

"That's right… I'm gay…" Yuudai confirmed. "And I want you…" Sasuke's entire body went rigid, and then shivered violently. The young Uchiha briskly walked backwards until he was behind his teammates.

"_Sasuke… this is no time to be homophobic!"_ Mayu nervously sweated.

"_Haha, Sasuke attracts guys!"_ Naruto chortled.

"I want you to become a part of my collection," Yuudai continued as if he had not just seen Sasuke's reaction. "You would only be the second, next to Morino-kun, but I'm sure as soon as you develop, you'll be first. I'm not into that pedophile shit." The man walked over to the chained man and wrapped his arms around his neck. "Morino-kun, you're a grown man, so I can do whatever I want-"

"Get your hands off him!" Mayu shouted. "My teammate and uncle are not yours to _collect_!" Yuudai merely stuck his tongue out at the kunoichi.

"Shut up! You know nothing! I first spotted this man in a crowd. I knew right away that I wanted him, so I lured him here," he stated. "It's been weeks, but I've finally managed to break his will. Now, he will not resist me at all. He's become much too dependent on me." The bandages were untied. They slowly fell to the ground. "Isn't that right, Morino-kun?"

Just as slowly, the man's eyes opened. Clouded blue orbs stared ahead, blankly. Mayu's own blue eyes widen in surprised. Never before had she seen such a look on her beloved uncle's face. Her uncle was the strongest ninja she had ever known. There no way he could be broken down to such a level. The kunoichi mentally shook her head. Her uncle was stronger than anyone. He wouldn't get caught like this, and he definitely wouldn't such tactics to bring him down. Mayu's lip twitched as she bowed her head. Remembering her uncle's face and comparing his expression now only furthered her anger. Her fingers curled into fists.

_Uncle Mori, how come you're so tough?_

_That's because I have the will of a tiger._

_Haha, yeah right!_

_You're too much like your mother sometimes, Mayu-chan._

_But that's okay! You're the one I look up to the most! … Just don't tell dad, though._

The hearty laughter of her uncle echoed through her mind. Mayu's teeth clenched. "How dare you…" she began. Her teammates noticed the way her shoulders shook. "How dare you treat my uncle that way?" The kunoichi showed her teeth in a snarl. "I won't forgive you for taking him against his will. I won't forgive you for torturing him. I won't forgive you for threatening my teammate just now. But most importantly, I won't forgive you for _trying_ to break my uncle's will. He is Ishikari! As a member of the Ishikari clan, his will never be broken because of scum like you!" Mayu's blue eyes focused a glare on Yuudai. "Naruto… Sasuke… Follow me!"

Her hands came together, forming hand signs.

"Big words coming from a brat."

Yuudai slipped away from his captive and stood up, moving away. It was then that Ishikari Morino slowly lifted his head. The will of Ishikari cannot be broken, he thought. His blurry sight focused on the girl that spoke those words. Damn… He could barely see her. This guy hadn't fed him since yesterday morning. Morino wondered how Mizuiro was fairing with this type of treatment. The shinobi suddenly breathed deeply. A rush of air filled his lungs. He knew this feeling. It was familiar, yet unfamiliar at the same time. He hadn't felt it since his sister. Morino blinked rapidly, focusing on the girl again. Her image was become clearer. In her hand, blue fire appeared. His jaw dropped, recognizing the attack. The Flame in All of Us… It was _Tsukeru_—a jutsu passed down the generations to masters. His gaze stared intensely at the face of the wielder. His eyes widen. _"Ma… Mayuka-chi?"_ No… It couldn't be. His sister was definitely gone, and she was never coming back. Finally, his vision completely cleared. _"No… It's Mayu-chan!"_

"We'll bust right through your shitty barrier!" Mayu's eyes stared at the blue flames in her hand for a moment before looking towards her enemy. He was still smirking smugly. The man was far enough away from her relative that only he would receive damage. She didn't need the curse mark in order to relish in the fact that Yuudai was going to pay. "I will save my uncle!"

"We only got four minutes to save the guy." Sasuke smirked as Chidori formed in his hand. His red eyes shifted over to the girl on his team. He stepped beside her. "I guess it's all or nothing, huh, Naruto?"

"I don't know what the hell you're talking about, but this sounds cool!" Naruto's clone disappeared, leaving the Rasengan in the real Naruto's palm. The blond shinobi grinned. "I've wanted to put this to good use for awhile!" He stepped to Mayu's right side. "What's the plan?"

"I was thinking the Naruto approach."

"That's fine by me!"

"Bring it on, brats!"

At 3:40 AM, Mount Yamamoto of the Hidden Hot Water Village detonated with a resounding blast.

0~0

Sasuke tossed the paper on the table in front of his blond teammate along with the four bento boxes he bought. Naruto leaned forward to read the heading. In bold letters, the title read '_Yamamoto… Dead_!' There was also a picture of an enormous hole in the ground due to the blast. The blond shinobi grinned. "Ooh! We're famous!" The young Uchiha promptly smacked Naruto upside the head. "What was that for?" he complained, almost glaring.

"They're calling whoever did it powerful fiends. The article says they're mountain killers." Sasuke sat across the blond with his arms crossed.

"I'm not seeing the bad side in all this."

"We're infamous now!"

"Infamous, famous—is there really a difference?" The young Uchiha rolled his eyes and sighed. "Our combined attack was pretty awesome, though… even if we didn't cause that explosion." Sasuke had to nod his head in agreement. At the last possible second, their separate attacks touched. The combination went through the barrier, shattering it like glass. Sasuke held up his hand. He could still feel the tingling sensation the fusion had caused. He made a fist, and then looked to Naruto. He was staring at his hand as well. So he hadn't been the only one to feel it, huh? "So anyway, how much longer do you think we need to stay in this village?" Naruto began opening his lunch.

"Don't know…" Sasuke shrugged. "Mayu's uncle was in pretty bad shape when we rescued him. It's only been two days since then. If he's anything like Mayu when it comes to food, I'm willing to bet he won't be back to full health until weeks pass by."

"I'm so glad you know my weakness, Sasuke." Their teammate's empathetic voice caused the two to look in that direction. Mayu was standing in the doorway to where her uncle was resting. She had barely left his side. "But you're wrong. My uncle may be Ishikari, but the huge appetite I have comes from my father." The kunoichi came and sat at the table. "He should be ready to move tonight." Her eyes spotted the newspaper. "Mountain killers…?" She picked the paper with an incredulous expression. "Holy crap, we're famous!"

"That's what _I_ said!"

"You guys are both morons." Sasuke shook his head. He then gestured to the bento. "Eat up, Mayu." The girl nodded her head before doing as she was told. The young Uchiha waited a few moments until he opened his mouth again. "What do you think happened to that guy and those animals? You think he might come for your uncle again." Mayu stopped eating as did Naruto.

"I doubt it," the blond said. "He seemed pretty freaked out over our jutsu. He seriously pissed his pants after we broke through his chakra barrier."

"It's a shame he escaped before I could get my hands on him," Mayu muttered with a frown. "I wanted him to pay severely for doing that to my uncle." After she scoffed lightly, she continued eating her meal. "Yuudai… the freaking coward…"

"Too bad we can't show off our combination jutsu in front of everyone in the chuunin exam!" Naruto exclaimed. "Speaking of which, isn't it coming up soon?"

"Yeah, real soon actually. As soon as we get back to the village, our training will continue with Kakashi-sensei." Mayu grinned suddenly. "We're going to train our butts off so that we all can become chuunin at the same time!"

"Fighting…!" Naruto cheered, thrusting his fist forward.

Unaware that they were being watched, the team of three continued to chat and eat their meals. Ishikari Morino softly closed the door after a few moments more. He turned his back to the door, sighing inaudibly. The way those three spoke to each other. _"How…?" _It was hardly surprising to see that she had become a ninja. However, it was surprising to see her at all. His sister, in her final moments, had sent his niece away with the forbidden jutsu of their clan. Mayu was not supposed to return to this world, and yet she had. Morino narrowed his eyes, pushing himself from the door. _"Of course there is a chance that because Mayuka-chi was dying, the jutsu wasn't used in the way that it should."_

He shook his head a bit. It did not matter what had caused her to return. The important thing was the fact that she did return to her home. Morino found himself smirking. Mayu had certainly gotten stronger since the last time he laid eyes on her. He did not see her full potential, but it seemed she had mastered Tsukeru. His niece must have found the scroll. Either that or the Hokage had given it to her. The former seemed more of a likely story. The old man had confiscated a couple of scrolls after Morino had left the village. "That's right… I still have my mission to carry out." He could not return to _stay_ in the village until his task was complete. Even if there was still a member of his family remaining, he still had to leave her behind.

Morino frowned as he moved over to the room's desk. He sat down in the chair, and then searched the drawers. There was a small pad of paper in the second drawer, along with a single pencil. The older Ishikari sighed inaudibly. _"So only a short goodbye, huh?"_ He pressed his lips into a thin line. "Sorry… Mayu-chan…" he murmured. After thinking of what to say for nearly five minutes, it finally came to him. He set the pencil down on the next, and then reached behind himself. He pulled the chain from around his neck. The man held the item up. The small trinket reflected in his eye. Morino set it down on the desk, and then picked up the pencil again.

_Continue to grow impressively strong, Mayu-chan._

_I will always watch over you from afar._

_Your mother would be proud._

_Become a great Master. _

The older Ishikari placed his chain on the notepad, and then stood up. His niece was a smart girl. She would undoubtedly figure out where the lock was for the key to open. She would cry. She would _definitely_ cry. However, she would get over his departure. Her teammates were like a family to her. He could tell based on the conversations among the three young ninja. The blond one was loud and obnoxious. He was more than a little reckless. This was not an assumption. Someone like him could end of getting into dangerous situations. However, that smile of his and the way he interacted with his niece… He would give his life to protect those he cared about. Uzumaki Naruto… Mayu had talked to Morino, thinking he was not conscious.

Uchiha Sasuke was also someone she had mentioned. Her other teammate was one of the last two members of the Uchiha clan. The young boy was the polar opposite of Naruto, and yet he deeply cared for his niece as well. His demeanor reminded him a lot of Uchiha Itachi. However, he was still a child. Although his clan was murdered, he still had innocence. Perhaps he, too, wanted revenge, yet it did not cloud his judgment. It did not consume him. Despite the pain, he could still laugh. The boy—he could be trusted as well. There was not a doubt in his mind. Leaving Mayu in the hands of these two shinobi would prove to be a great decision. Morino could rest easy, knowing she would be fine without him.

The man turned his eyes to the door. His gaze remained on the door for a few moments, simply listening to the snickering and teasing of the team. Morino let a small smile cross his face. _"Yes, Mayu-chan will do fine with those two by her side."_ He headed towards the window. The Ishikari man silently slid it open and jumped on the window's frame. He paused in his movements and looked back. _"However, I suppose I can check up on her now that I know she's here."_ It was until an hour later that the three discovered his departure.

"Why did he leave his shoes?" Naruto wondered. Sasuke glared at the blond, placing a comforting arm around the distraught kunoichi. "What? It's a reasonable question!" He frowned a bit before mimicking Sasuke's actions. "I'm sorry, Mayu."

"It's… It's fine…"

"But hey… he had to leave whatever this is behind for a-" Sasuke moved to pick up the item that was dropped, but he stopped. Mayu sniffed lightly, rubbing her eyes. "This is…"

"What's wrong?" she asked, stepping beside him. "Huh…? This is my uncle's necklace! He's never taken it off!" She grabbed the chain, holding the adornment up to her eye. "It's a key…"

"Yeah, but to what?" Naruto locked his fingers behind his head.

"I don't know…" Mayu placed the silver chain over neck. She held the black key up. "It has to be important somehow."

"Mayu, I-"

"What is it, Sasuke?" She turned to him as did Naruto. Both wore looks of curiosity.

"_Uh_…" he hesitated. The young Uchiha then looked away. "_Ah_, it's nothing. Don't worry about it." His teammates gave him questioning looks, yet Sasuke did not continue. They looked at one another before shrugging.

"I guess… we should head back to the village now."

"Yeah, I can't wait to tell Kakashi-sensei all about our super cool move!" Naruto nodded his head.

"Well, there's no use hanging around here, anymore. Let's go!" Mayu moved towards the open door. Naruto followed, claiming dibs on the extra bento. "You okay, Sasuke?" The Uchiha snapped out of his daze.

"_Uh_, yeah… I'm fine." His eyes stared at the key around his teammate's neck. He blinked slowly. His hand shoved in his pocket, where the key and picture still remained. _"Not yet…"_ he thought.

0~0

"I'm home…!" Mayu announced as she opened the door. However, she received no response. "I guess Yasmine's not here." She turned her eyes to the setting sun. "She should be." Her blond teammate walked past her, telling her not to worry. "Yeah, yeah… I know I shouldn't. She can obviously take care of herself. See you tomorrow, Naruto!" He turned back with a grin, waving excitedly. Mayu shook her head, and then closed the door.

The grin fell from Naruto's face. He put his arm down to his side before turning and walking to his door. _"What should I do?"_ he questioned himself. The blond shinobi walked through his door, closed it, and then took off his shoes. He tossed his bag on the floor. Naruto furiously rubbed his head. He had been thinking of what to do ever since he got around to thinking about it. Now, he wished he would have forgotten all together. _"Sasuke and Mayu should know about it, but…"_ His Uchiha teammate had gone home for today, telling them to get plenty of sleep. His teammates cared for him a great deal. It wasn't right to just hide what he found. _"They deserve to know especially since that guy's the one who…"_

His throat process trailed off. Naruto unzipped his jacket halfway, and then reached in. He pulled out a scroll. He had discovered the item buried underneath the surface. A part of it was sticking up, causing him to trip over it. To be honest, if he hadn't tripped, he probably wouldn't have found it in the first place. Naruto sighed heavily. "I don't think it's a good time to mention it," he murmured. With the upcoming exam, it would be bad if his teammates had other thoughts plaguing their minds. It would just be another repeat of what happened to Mayu while she was in Sakura's body. His blue eyes narrowed as he remembered. He would tell them eventually.

Hopefully, they wouldn't be really angry with him.

0~0

Sasuke aimlessly stared up at his ceiling. His entire body felt heavy. "Why do I feel this way just because I'm keeping a secret?" He turned over with a heavy sigh. The old picture he found stared back at him. He had it prompt up against the wall. The young Uchiha frowned, and then closed his eyes. "Mayu's going to be pissed when she finds out." He reached into his pocket and pulled out the silver chain. He dangled it in front of his eyes. "It looks just like the one around her neck now…" Why did he find it with a picture of Mayu?

His dark eyes shifted over to the picture again. Actually, it wasn't just a picture of his teammate. Behind the younger version of Mayu stood two adults—a man and a woman. Both had features that appeared in Mayu, so Sasuke assumed that the two were her parents. However, he could not understand why something like this was one of Akatsuki's lairs. He knew that his brother and Mayu had been close. She even considered him family. But what about Itachi? Did he consider her anything? If not, why did Itachi keep something like this for so long? Better yet, why did he even have it with him?

The young Uchiha sighed again. He couldn't possibly bring it to Mayu's attention now. Her judgment of things could become blurry like they had at the last chuunin exam. His teammates—both of them—needed to fight with all they had. _"I shouldn't bring them down with me if this gets to me."_ Sasuke nodded in head, affirming his decision. _"For now, we are only going to focus on training. There is no telling who we might fight."_

She was probably going to be angry for keeping this away.

0~0

Yuudai quickly crawled backwards, yet it didn't do any good. The man only came closer. Finally, his back hit the wall. He was utterly trapped. His pets had been chased off by the large white tiger earlier. There was no helping him this time. Yuudai swallowed hard. His entire body was shaking. Fearful green up looked up at the impassive expression of his enemy. Sweat formed and slid down Yuudai's face. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry! Please don't kill me!"

The man narrowed his eyes. He flipped open his lighter, lighting the cigarette in his mouth. After inhaling, the man removed the cigarette from his mouth and held it between his two fingers. Slowly, smoke was breathed out through his mouth and nose. "What makes you think I'll let you escape after hurting my niece?" Ishikari Morino stepped closer. "Also… only you and I know the truth about what happened in that mountain."

"Wh-What's that supposed to mean?" Yuudai stammered out.

"It means that you know the truth, and I can't allow that. It is the perfect story. Mayu-chan and her teammates are so strong that they destroyed an entire mountain. No mere man would stand up to that team."

"B-But it was an-" A kick to the ribs stopped Yuudai from finishing his sentence. He had been kicked so hard that he coughed out blood.

"I suppose those were your last words then, ne?"

Ishikari Morino pulled out an explosive note.

0~0

Finished October 21, 2010

It's been a long time, huh? Well, be happy that I finished it before next year came around! I've been extremely missing since this whole college thing started. Who knew…?

**Rachitsu**: If you haven't figured it out by now, it is the name of Team 7's mountain killer attack. The name is composed of the beginning of their strongest attacks. **_Ra_**sengan, _**Chi**_dori, and _**Tsu**_keru. Yeah, I know I'm pretty clever. As you noticed, I did not describe what the attack looks like or the actual damage it caused. Some might be disappointed, however, there is a reason I did not describe it here. I will save the 'mountain killer' for the future. So you'll just have to stick around… or just imagine what the real attack looks like. Whoever can come close to what I have in mind will get a special place in my heart. :D Oh, I guess I'll give prompts too.

**Special Chuunin Exam**: The first fight will take place in the next chapter. I have everything already planned out, but you'll just have to wait and see who fights who. Basically, since this story is about Team 7, I will only be describing their fights. There will be no _special_ two that will have their fight laid out like I did with Gaara and Ino in the last chuunin exam. Since no other fight will really be significant to the story, like their fight, there is no reason to describe them. Sorry if you were expecting me to.

Next time: _I Am Not…_

I'm looking forward to your reviews… even though it's been such a long time.

Oh yeah, by the way, I do have another story besides this one. You should definitely go and check it out. And yes, I shamefully advertised my own stuff. But read it anyway!


	29. I Am Not

The Hokage's eyes scanned over the paper for just a moment before they shifted to the two people inside her office. One was an adult male—a member of ANBU. However, he did not have his mask on. His name was Sawatari Jano. He had been demoted by the former Hokage due to severe alcohol abuse. The man must have undergone a transformation of some sort, though. He looked… _clean_. Tsunade focused her attention to the child standing beside Jano. Unlike the previous encounter with the girl, she did not wear a smile. In fact, she looked a bit nervous. Her thumbs twiddled in front of her. The foreigner's brown eyes were watching her moving appendages.

The Fifth Fire Shadow placed the paper on the desk as she leaned back. For a moment, she closed her eyes. Sighing, she opened her eyes again. "Do you realize what this means?" Jano cleared his throat as if to say something, yet he only nodded his head. The foreigner stiffly did the same. Tsunade gave a humorless chuckle. "Look, kid, I can tell you have doubts. What you're asking for… it's not something to have with uncertainties." Again, Yasmine nodded her head, causing the Hokage to frown. "Why do you want this?"

"… I need money."

"That can't be the only reason for choosing this."

"Yes… Yes, it is. I have already searched the village and there is no one willing to accept a thirteen year old." Finally, she looked up at the leader of the village. "It's the only thing I can do, Hokage-sama. Please grant me this." Tsunade leaned forward again, lacing her fingers together, elbows on the desk. "I would be a valuable asset… if you'd let me."

"Yes, yes… I know what you're capable of, but still…" The woman glanced at the paper on the desk. "If you are not completely certain, I…" She stopped before finishing her sentence. A sudden thought had struck her. "How about this…? The chuunin exam is tomorrow. Will you be a spectator?"

"Well, of course. Since Mayu and Neji are participating." The girl shrugged, and then grinned. "I can't wait!"

"… I see…" Tsunade decided to brush aside Yasmine's last comment. "Instead of enjoying, I want you to pay close attention to the fights you see." The girl tilted her head to the side. "After it's all over, you then must come to a decision about this life."

"… Oh, I get it!" Yasmine finally said. "This is to see real ninja battles and decide if I'm up to it, right?" Tsunade nodded her head. "Yes, okay then. I will do it. Thank you, Hokage-sama." The foreign girl bowed politely, and the turned to her former guardian. He, too, bowed in respect.

"Come, gaki, I'll make sure we have front row seats tomorrow," Jano said, taking the girl's hand. Yasmine enthusiastically nodded her head.

"This is going to be super special awesome!"

0~0

Naruto paced back and forth. Sasuke's eyebrow twitched each time the blond walked past him. Both were irritated. The festival had already began, and yet the there was no sign of their teammate. In fact, she was an hour behind schedule. She was even later than Kakashi. Their sensei, _of all people_, became fed up with waiting and had left the two shinobi by themselves. Naruto suddenly let out an aggravated shout before banging his fists on Mayu's door. After a few moments of this, the door was nearly ripped off its hinges by an irritated kunoichi. "What?" she growled. Sasuke pushed himself from the adjacent wall.

"What do you mean what? We-" He stopped his complaints once he took in his teammate's appearance. Despite, the snarl on her face, Mayu appeared different—cute even. The girl no longer wore her hair in its usual style. Instead of the long braid, her dark tresses were pulled and pinned behind her head. Her bangs swooped, partially covering her left eye. The only reason it was not completely covering her eye was because of the two dark purple pins, which kept her hair at bay. Two long strands—one on each side—hung loosely over her chest. She wore a blue floral print yukata with a dark red sash. On her feet were wooden sandals—geta. "I… I thought we agreed to wear our normal clothes?" Sasuke found his voice again. Mayu's frown deepened as she crossed her arms.

"We _did_!" she nearly hissed. "But _someone_ had to get all girly on me right when I was heading out!" Her blue eyes shifted, focusing on the girl who had just now come into view. As usual, there was a smile on face. She, too, wore a yukata. It was grey with black floral print. A pale yellow sash wrapped around the foreigner. Her hair was pulled into a side ponytail. She also wore wooden sandals.

"But at least I didn't make you wear makeup!" Yasmine chimed sweetly. "Misao-sama was not as nice as I was when we had a festival in her village." Her brown eyes turned to Sasuke and Naruto. She bent her upper body, acknowledging their presence. Mayu had told her that she could not act out any of her wild fantasies around her teammates, so it was best to be distance when it came to these two. Yasmine turned to go. "Well, I'm off! Neji says he's going to introduce me to Lee-kun!" With a fangirlish squeal, the foreign left the team of three behind.

Mayu glowered at her best friend's back. She was a bit jealous that Yasmine was going to see the older shinobi. The kunoichi had not seen him since she was in Haruno Sakura's body. It was a shame, too. Out of anyone, Rock Lee was her favorite… besides Gaara, that is. Mayu turned back to her teammates. "Well, let's go have some _fun_!"

"Finally!" Naruto grumbled. "You took _forever_! Kakashi-sensei went on ahead. Should we find him first?"

"_Nah_, let's just go." Sasuke quickly turned and walked away. The blond followed him, leaving his female team member behind. Calling out angrily, Mayu hurriedly locked her door before catching up to them—or at least trying to. Her teammates were walking noticeably faster. Mayu's eyebrow twitched. She slowed her pace, wanting to see if she was correct. Like she assumed, their pace had slowed as well, but she still couldn't catch up. The kunoichi went a little faster. They went a little faster. Mayu slowed down again.

"_Way to be assholes, guys!"_ she thought. The vein in her forehead throbbed. _"Fine, I'll just stay back until you're finished talking, but you better pray that this boy-to-boy talk doesn't take more than five minutes!"_

A shiver went up Naruto's spine. He shuddered violently. His blue eyes glanced back. As he thought, Mayu was giving them the evilest of stares. Sweating nervously, Naruto nudged Sasuke's arm. It was his idea to do such a thing. Although, he hadn't said anything, the blond could tell that his teammate wanted to say something, but didn't want Mayu to hear. "Come on, already! I feel like my life's been shortened!"

Finally, the Uchiha's dark eyes shifted to his male teammate. "For the past week, we've been watched." Naruto's eyes expanded, only to narrow. "More specially, Mayu has been watched. That is why I always insist that we're together at all times." The blond nodded his head. He would have thought Sasuke would get annoyed after awhile. As it turns out, he was more concerned for his teammate's wellbeing.

Sasuke was such a cute guy.

"So even now?" Naruto asked. His teammate nodded his head in affirmation. "So their eyes are on Mayu, meaning we can talk freely." Again, Sasuke nodded. "But I don't get it. Who is tailing Mayu like this?"

"Haruno… Sakura." That name caused Naruto to wince. "I could feel her stare on Mayu—watching her like prey. It was the same feeling I got from Gaara." Sasuke's eyes were on the ground. "Her intentions toward Mayu aren't as simple as learning her tragedies. No, she wants to get Mayu alone and _hurt_ her." Inside his pockets, his fists were clenched. "This is a huge problem, Naruto, which is why it needs to be settled _tonight_." The blond gave a questioning look. "Mayu is a little far behind us now that we've reached downtown. It would be so easy for her to lose sight of us. That is when she will come."

"What? And we're just gonna-"

"_Yes_," Sasuke emphasized. "I don't want to, but this needs to be done. I admit that Mayu wearing something so… unsuitable was not supposed to happened, but it happened anyway. Now that we're not watching her, she will be taken… any minute now. This isn't the first time. You know that, don't you?"

"But…" Naruto frowned and guiltily averted his eyes. "Mayu hasn't said anything, so I thought…" Sasuke scoffed.

"You know how she is—always willing to explode in anger, but never wanting anyone to see when something's truly bothering her." The Uchiha removed his hands from his pockets. "Well, I say that this treatment she's receiving from Sakura has gone on for long enough." The blond could now see Sasuke's clenched fists. "Did you see the bruises on her legs? Those weren't from _us_! Our physical sparring together focuses on our upper bodies. How could Mayu let this happen?" His nails had dug into his flesh, drawing blood. "_Teh_… Well, I am not going to stand idly by and pretend this isn't happening." Naruto slowly closed his eyes. To become so angry—Sasuke truly cared for his teammate. His intentions were subtle, but in the end, he cared for both of them. "We already agreed if Mayu wouldn't take care of it, then we will, right?" Naruto stiffly nodded his head. "Gaara is also aware of my plan. All we do now is wait for his signal."

"But like you said, Sasuke, I _do_ know Mayu. She'll be pretty pissed if we interfere."

"Yeah, I know… so… if something doesn't change with this encounter, we're stepping in so there won't _be_ a next encounter."

0~0

Mayu struggled to get pass bystanders. It only took a minute for the crowd to surround her. Although she struggled to keep moving forward, she had long since lost the backs of her teammates. Grumbling to herself, she promised them pain if and when she finally found them. Hell, she shouldn't even look for them. Perhaps she could run off and find Yasmine. Flushing at the thought of seeing Rock Lee in traditional clothing, Mayu halted. Shaking her head, she rid herself of such thoughts. The kunoichi sighed heavily and looked to her left. Naruto and Sasuke would find her sooner or later. They weren't the jerks that she called them on occasion. Smiling to herself, the kunoichi jumped up, most likely startling the people around her.

She could have sworn she head 'Friggin' ninja,' but that could have been the wind.

She had almost slipped. These clothes and shoes were something she was not used to. Mayu couldn't wait to get into more… sensible clothing. Her blue eyes scanned the crowd as she walked on the roof of the building. There was no sign of bright orange anywhere, which meant there was no sign of her other teammate either. Huffing lightly, Mayu shifted her attention up. It was a beautiful night. The stars were twinkling brightly and the sky was clear. Even the crescent move seemed so radiant despite its visible size.

Out of nowhere, the wind shifted, causing the kunoichi to shudder. Sensing another presence, she looked down. In front of her—about fifteen feet away—was another. It was most likely a female, judging from the pink and red yukata. Only the left side of the yukata was pink, while the other was red. There was no floral print. An emerald colored sash tied around the girl's waist. The sleeves of the yukata were long. It was also cut short, revealing skin just below the knees. However, Mayu could not see the face. The person was holding a very light pink paper umbrella. She could see the mouth, but every other feature of the person's face was covered. The painted red lips formed into a smirk.

"My, my… What a coincidence to see you here." The female chuckled, apparently finding something funny. Mayu clenched her teeth. She knew that patronizing voice. Unconsciously, the kunoichi took a step back.

"Haruno," she bit out. The female moved the parasol a bit, showing the rest of her face. "What do you want?" Her jaw tensed. Her bruises had just finished healing from _last_ time. _"This girl just won't leave me alone, will she?" _

"Is that any way to talk to your friend, Mayu-chan?" The pink-haired kunoichi gave a pleasant smile. Mayu glared. This cute attitude she had. It pissed her off especially since both of them knew of her intentions. "_Oh_ my, _oh_ me… What a horrible face to give."

"Cut the bullshit, Haruno! If you don't have anything to say then get out of my way!"

Sakura released a slow sigh. She turned on her heel, turning her back to Mayu. The dark-haired kunoichi twitched. She was doing this to get her riled up. Well, she wouldn't fall for it—not this time. Sakura had used this tactic before, and ultimately, that's how she ended up with the bruises. Mayu breathed through her nose. Sakura was doing her monologue right now. The things that came from her mouth… It would be so easy to push her off the roof and claim it was an accident. Mayu mentally shook her head. That wouldn't solve anything.

"… Well, I suppose I've ranted for long enough, Mayu-chan." Green eyes stared in her direction. "See you in three minutes."

"What-" Before Mayu could finish her question, she felt her body crumbling. Gritting, she fell to her knees. The strike she felt—it was the Gentle Fist. The last thing she saw before darkness was cruel green eyes… and the smile of a psychopath.

0~0

Cold water splashed on her face. Mayu became conscious, coughing and sputtering. "Darn, I thought she would be wearing makeup to seduce Sasuke-kun." A voice caused the kunoichi to look up. For some reason, her wrists were bound behind her and she was on her knees. It was night—still night. Blue eyes darted from side to side. She was no longer in town. However, the lights of the town were visible. She was not that far away. If she had to guess, Mayu would say she was now where the forest and town met. She looked down again, trying to figure out how she had ended up somewhere else.

"_Haruno…!"_ she thought right before her hair was grabbed, which forced her head to snap up. Wincing, Mayu opened her eyes. She was greeted by the sight of Sakura and Ino. In the blond kunoichi's hands was a metal bucket. It dropped from her hands with a clang. The noise didn't see to go very far. "What the hell are you doing?"

Ino suddenly grabbed her chin. "Save it, faker! You don't get to talk!" The blond roughly pushed her face, causing her to fall. Well, she would have fallen if it hadn't been for the whole hair pulling thing. Craning her neck, Mayu looked at her captive. It was Hyuga Hinata. Mentally, Mayu shook her head. She couldn't believe it. Sakura had somehow convinced such a sweet girl to do something like this. "_Hm_… What's this?" Ino made a grab at Mayu's neck. She snatched the chain right off.

"Hey, give that back!"

The blond kunoichi ignored her and examined the small key. The Yamanaka girl sneered. "You know, I saw Sasuke-kun staring at this thing. What? Do you have matching sets, or something?" Mayu furrowed her eyebrows as the chain was passed to Sakura. She mouthed her teammate's name. He couldn't have had it. She wore it _all the time_. Mayu focused on key, and then shifted her eyes up. For the briefest of moments, the lovely smile on Sakura's face dropped. For less than a second, she wore a look of pure fury. However, it quickly changed back. Mayu was ashamed to admit that this sudden alteration frightened her.

"So… Sasuke-kun's giving you presents? You must feel so lucky. No one ever receives gifts from him. Or perhaps it's Uzumaki Naruto? I bet you have them both… so in love with you. It's sickening. No wonder they didn't want to think of anyone else." Hinata's grip on Mayu's hair became painfully tighter. So that was it, huh? Hinata participated in something like this because of her crush. Sakura was taking advantage of that.

"That is a misunderstanding. They are nothing but my teammates. They're my _friends_."

"Why should we believe a liar?" Ino questioned. "Liars don't _have_ friends." Her hands were on her hips. "Hinata." Mayu was suddenly pushed right into Ino. However, the blond pushed her back. The three kunoichi surrounded her and took turns pushing Mayu, calling her names, pulling her hair, smacking her cheeks, and taunting her with her uncle's chain. They said she wasn't wanted. They had told her she didn't and would never belong.

Finally, they pushed her away. Her back hit the back of a tree. Mayu fell to her knees again. Her hair was messed up. Yasmine had spent so much time on it. She narrowed her eyes bowed her head. One of her sandals was missing. Her cheeks stung. This treatment—this whole situation—wasn't something that should be happening. If Yasmine was here, she would probably be complaining how much the characters were OOC. Mayu stifled a chuckle. Why would be she thinking of Yasmine in her current predicament?

"This is ridiculous. Even I'm acting OOC right now," she murmured. The dark-haired kunoichi lowered her head further down. "I'm warning you... Give me back that chain. You don't know what you're dealing with."

"On the contrary, Mayu-chan." Sakura moved forward. She yanked her hair, forcing Mayu to see eye-to-eye. "I know _exactly_ what I'm dealing with—a pitiful girl who was so jealous of me that she stole my life, my friends, my crush, and everything I treasured." Mayu didn't even bother to correct her. "You're a pathetic excuse for a life. You became spiteful when it was time to release my body." She leaned in closer—most likely so that Mayu was the only one to hear. "I have _nothing_… and it's your entire fault." However, blue eyes were focused on key pendant. It was twinkling in the moonlight, teasing her. Mayu's teeth grind together.

"Well, you know what?" she nearly snarled. "You're a spoiled manipulative little _bitch_! And I don't give a flying fuck what you have or don't have anymore!" Before Sakura could react, Mayu's head had already collided with her forehead. The pink-haired girl released her hold on the chain. The young Ishikari sidestepped the falling girl and made a grab for the chain with her teeth. She then dashed for the other two. Both Ino and Hinata wore similar surprised expressions. Using a bit of her chakra, Mayu propelled herself from the ground. She did a flip midair. The heel of her feet came down on the heads of the two kunoichi. Wasting no time, she landed in front of them only to bring her leg up in a swinging motion. Both girls were caught by Mayu's leg. The dark-haired kunoichi jumped again. This time, she maneuvered her arms in front of her by moving the bounded wrists under her curled body. She performed a couple of back flips. Once she was sure it was safe enough, she stopped. The chain fell from her mouth into her open palm. "The next time you step to me, I won't be so _nice_." Mayu narrowed her eyes. "Even if it's the two I considered friends for a time."

The groans of the fallen kunoichi were momentarily forgotten, though. The noise of clapping had stolen her attention. Mayu sharply turned her head. For a moment, breathing was pretty difficult. Standing there, clapping was her Uchiha teammate. Not only him, but Naruto was there. And even _Gaara_! Mayu's lips parted. She could feel tears threatening to spill. Kill me now, she thought. Had they seen it all? Had they seen such unsightly things?

Mayu lowered her head, looking similar to a kicked puppy. Sasuke stopped clapping and shook his head. He could understand why his teammate was embarrassed, but she didn't have to cry about it. Honestly… The young Uchiha took long strides over to Mayu, prompting the other two to follow. His hand touched her right shoulder. She flinched and wouldn't look him in the eye. "You're quite the vicious ninja when you need to be, Mayu." Her head snapped up. She blinked back her tears in surprise. "You could have done that a little sooner, though." His teammate gave a weak smile.

Naruto appeared at Sasuke's side, slamming his hand down on Mayu's shoulder. "Hell yeah! That was the Mayu I know and love!" He gave his best grin. The Ishikari sniffed lightly, and then rubbed at her face with the sleeve of her yukata. Sasuke plucked the chain from Mayu's hand, and then placed it around her neck, snapping it back in place. Naruto's grin faltered somewhat, however. Thinking back, it had been so hard. If the abuse had gone on any longer, neither Sasuke nor Gaara would be able to hold him back. When he first saw it, he could not believe it was happening. But once reality set it, he could feel his own heartbeat increasing at a rapid pace. He could imagine that Sasuke felt the exact same thing. Small digit-sized trenches in the dirt could attest to that.

Unlike the two other boys, Gaara had remained relatively calm during the confrontation. The redhead uncrossed his arms and walked forward. Mayu's blue eyes turned to him as her binding was cut with a kunai. Her face was flushed. Gaara paused for a moment in front of the kunoichi. She said his name. She sounded both relieved and flustered. Not saying a word, the former Sand shinobi closed his eyes. He then walked past the trio toward the female group of three. They had recovered from the strikes they had received. Gaara stopped in front of Ino. She stared up at him, glaring. "Come," he told her, not caring for the other two. The boy walked away, expecting Ino to follow. When she didn't, Gaara stopped and turned his head. The blond kunoichi was pulled toward him by use of his sand. Again, the redhead moved forward, dragging an unwilling and screaming Ino behind.

Team 7 blinked as they watched them go. The scene was a bit comical despite the situation. Finally, Naruto brought their attention back by placing an arm around Mayu. Sasuke did the same. "Well, let's go enjoy the rest of the festival! I haven't won any prizes yet!" Mayu managed a chuckle. It was a good thing to hear. Sasuke had told him depending on how long the bullying had been going on that Mayu's attitude would reflect that. It must have not gone for a long time if she was laughing. The three began to walk forward, heading back into town. Yeah, this was a good thing. Naruto locked his fingers behind his head. It also meant that she wouldn't be distracted during the exam tomorrow, too.

"Na-Naruto-kun…!" The familiar stutter of his name made the blond stop. His teammates had stopped as well, but they were a little bit ahead. They had turned back just as he had. Hyuga Hinata, a girl who had shown kindness to him, stood a nervous wreck. He could literally see her shaking. Her cheeks were red, which was normal for her, but she seriously looked afraid. Although, she was wearing a baby blue yukata with deep purple floral patterns, he could not find her pretty—not now. What she did to his teammate, what she took part in—it was unforgivable. Naruto narrowed his eyes. Hinata let out a squeaky gasp. "Naruto-kun, I-I… This wa-was-"

"Don't."

This one word pierced Hinata's flesh and struck her heart like a blade. Eyes wide, she watched the blond shinobi turn away from her. He fell into step with his team, so he did not see the tears cascading down the Hyuga's face. "Na-Na-Naruto-kun…!" Hinata fell to her knees, holding her face in her hands. This horrible feeling—it could kill her. That one word had the power of any harsh rejection she had previously imagined—perhaps even more powerful. Uzumaki Naruto, her one and only crush, had come to _hate_ her. _"Naruto-kun actually hates me! What have I done?" _Silent sobs shook her body. A hand suddenly fell on her shoulder. Surprised, Hinata halted her sniveling and gazed up. Her friend, Sakura, was giving a comforting smile. That's right… She had done what she did for Sakura. She wasn't in the wrong here. It was Ishikari Mayu—it was her fault. Composing herself, Hinata lightly touched Sakura's hand. She had to be stronger than this. The Hyuga heir bowed her head. It still hurt, though.

She completely missed the almost crazed smirk on Haruno Sakura's face.

0~0

The stadium was packed. Chuunin, jounin, and even members of ANBU filled every seat. Mere citizens were forced to watch from the stairs of the stadium. To say that it a bright and sunny day would be a horrible lie. Although it was only an hour after noon, the sky was dark. Thunder rumbled in the distance. Signs of rain were fast approaching. Every so often, harsh winds would pick up, blowing lightweight objects around. Most, however, could deal with things flying in their face. As long as they could see the next batch of potential chuunin, then this rarity in weather was just fine.

Down on the ground level of stadium, the weather was not just fine. Mayu hugged herself when another wind swept through. The kunoichi bared her teeth in irritation. What a terrible day to not wear sleeves. Her blue eyes shifted to her dark-haired teammate. Although he was not wearing any sleeves either, he looked as comfortable as a lazy cat. His sleeveless shirt was a dark shade of grey and it had a deep V-neck. Of course, the collar of the shirt was large and up, hiding his neck. The hem of the collar was red. What was up with him and collars, anyway? Usually, he would be sporting shorts, but this time he wore grey pants, similar to their sensei. Sasuke must have felt her gaze because his head turned in her direction. He smirked as if he knew what she was thinking—the jerk.

Scoffing, Mayu turned her attention to her blond teammate. He also decided to switch up his attire. Naruto went with something a bit less loud. Of course, there was still his signature orange color thrown in, but it was less obvious. He wore black pants—not loose, but not tight either. These pants covered the top of his new black ninja sandals. The pants had one orange strip going down each leg. The blond just couldn't let the orange color go, could he? His long-sleeved jacket was also black. The cuffs were orange. The jacket was partially unzipped, revealing a dark orange shirt underneath.

The reason they all wore different clothes was because Kakashi had implied that the exam's setting was going to be dark. They had thought he meant it was going to be night, so they decided to dress accordingly. Mayu, herself, traded her bright mission clothes for a sleeveless, zip-up, dark purple shirt. Right now, she would give anything to have a long sleeved under armor shirt that footballers liked to wear. Well, at least her legs were covered and warm by the thick black leggings. Over her leggings, she wore grey shorts. Her hands would not be as cold either because she decided to wear her fingerless black gloves. She didn't want to, but if she had to, she would use her master jutsu.

Anyway, the dark clothes that they wore were good to wear, but the wind was currently winning. Mayu seriously wanted to go back home and cower under her covers, waiting for the storm to pass. She looked up at the sky. _"Yeah, it is definitely going to storm." _Her eyes turned back to her leader. The Hokage was still giving a speech. Well, technically, it wasn't a speech. It was more of an informational type of thing. It was to explain why this special chuunin exam was being held in the first place. Mayu felt that it was a bit too long, but hey—she wasn't the leader.

Judging from Tsunade's words, it was coming to an end. When it finally did, she looked to the proctor of the exam. The proctor was now Umino Iruka. The man was smiling. He was most likely proud of each and every one of his former students. Honestly, he looked on the verge of tears. Mayu had to chuckle at the thought. It was too bad she did have the opportunity to be his student. Iruka suddenly cleared his throat. He dug in his chuunin vest jacket and pulled out a slip of paper. "I have here with me the list of who will be fighting whom." The man did not reveal the paper to the genin. "I will call out the pairings when it is your time to fight instead of announcing it now."

"What? Why?" Tenten asked.

"On missions, enemies don't give heads up of who will fight, so we won't do the same," Iruka explained. "The rules for this exam will be the same as the last. I will decide when the match is over and who the winner is. There are fourteen of you, so there will be seven fights. Whether or not you become chuunin depends on your match. Good luck to all of you." No one spoke, so Iruka cleared his throat again. "The first match will be for Akimichi Chouji and Tsuchi Kin. The rest of you will go wait."

The others began to move toward the doorway she lead up the stairs. The two mentioned, however, stayed rooted to the spot. Tsuchi Kin slowly released a breath. Her dark eyes turned to her opponent. It looked as though some of his fat had turned to muscle. She narrowed her eyes. It was only a little, though. If she moved right, her match could be over in a few short minutes. Kin was brought from her thoughts by the wind. At least she thought it was the wind before realizing that it was warm. "Hey, bitch…" Kin felt her face contort in anger. "Good luck in your match." The kunoichi was going to brush aside Inuzuka Kiba's comment. After all, it wasn't the first time he had called her that word. Besides, he _had_ wished her luck. However, the action that followed his encouraging words—she just couldn't ignore it. The dog ninja had whacked her behind!

Many laughed after the former Sound kunoichi turned and punched the Leaf shinobi. Laughter filled the entire stadium. The boy's teammates looked on in embarrassment. For some reason, Kiba had taken an odd liking to pissing Kin off. Hinata sighed lightly while Shino shook his head. Iruka chuckled nervously as he watched his former student being carried away by Shino's bugs. Swirls replaced Kiba's eyes. The dog shinobi still wore the goofy grin on his face even as he held his stinging red cheek. Iruka turned his attention back to the two ninja. Both looked eager for battle—Kin more so than Chouji. The chuunin male stretched his arm up to the darkened sky. "Let the first match of the Special Chuunin Exam begin!"

0~0

"Wow…!" Naruto leaned forward. His hands clenched the railing as his blue eyes watched the medics move an unconscious Chouji from the field. "Unbelievable! He got so much stronger than the last time!" He looked towards the winner of the match. "That Kin girl was amazing, too, though. There were times I couldn't see the senbon that she threw!" Mayu nodded in agreement.

"Speed was her advantage against Chouji."

"If she had been at the same level as when she fought Shikamaru, she would have lost." Sasuke crossed his arms. Kiba came over to the team, grinning as if he knew something they did not.

"That's because she's been influence by the Inuzuka clan," he stated proudly. "Our clan focuses on speed, ya know! She can almost keep up with me!"

"Almost…?" An irritated voice asked. The four shifted their eyes to see Tsuchi Kin. She looked tired, but there was still a glare on her face. "Pardon me, but who got the last bit of food last night?" Kiba produced a flat expression.

"That's _only_ because you cheated!"

Kin placed her hands on her hips, looking smug. "Only a good ninja would see through that trap. I guess you're not as cool as you _think_." A silence followed the kunoichi's words. Then the snickers started. Kiba flushed in embarrassment.

"Shut up…!" he roared. The three instantly stopped. However, a few more giggles escaped. Kiba sharply turned to Kin again. "You're just mad that I am better than you!"

"And you're just mad that I'm _faster_ than you! _And_ Akamaru likes me better, too!" On top of his head, the dog yipped. Kiba blinked, and then frown.

"Thanks a lot, Akamaru…"

This caused laughter from the three and the smug look to return to Kin's face. The laughter also attracted the attention of most the genin, Tayuya included. Tsuchi Kin—she seemed to be quite comfortable here in this foreign place. The red-haired kunoichi knew from the beginning that she was the only real outsider in the village. Kin had the Inuzuka clan backing her up. She had a family. Even that psychopathic Gaara kid had a place to call home. He was a former ruthless killer who reveled in bloodshed, and yet... He, too, had a family. What did Tayuya, a former Sound kunoichi, have? She narrowed her eyes at the scene, and then looked away. _"Nothing,"_ she thought. A frown slowly made its way onto her face. _"Nothing is what I fucking have."_

Unknown to Tayuya, green eyes were watching her every move.

Meanwhile, Kiba and Kin had left team of three to bicker some more. After the two left, the team turned serious. "So what do you guys think?" Mayu asked. "Let's start with the winner."

"I think it's pretty obvious," Sasuke said. "We just have to be faster, and that settle things with Chouji, too."

"_Wrong_! Not everyone can become faster just because they want to." Mayu was quick to snuff her teammate's opinion, causing him to glare. "Not even you, a supposed rookie genius, could-"

"I dare you to finish that sentence."

"Hey, if speed isn't an option, how about stopping her from moving?" Naruto successfully stopped his teammates from fighting. Mayu turned her attention to the blond shinobi with a smile. "Chouji's signature move has gotten faster, so I think the same plan would work for him, too."

"_Oh_, Naruto, you're so smart! I'm so glad not all the guys on my team are idiots!"

"Seriously, Mayu, one more time." Sasuke raised his fist to emphasize his threat. The kunoichi only gave him a sarcastic sheepish smile.

Naruto grinned. It was nice seeing Mayu teasing Sasuke. Hopefully, this meant she was completely over what happened last night. The grin dropped. His blue eyes turned to the stone floor. Mayu—he hoped that he would never go through something like that. When his teammate was in another's body, he saw the way she behaved with Ino and Hinata. Those three—they were the best of friends. She had been so happy, only to have that kind of happiness snatched away from her in an instant. And what's worse… Ino and Hinata didn't just ignore her. They had completely turned on Mayu, viewing her as an enemy. An image of Gaara appeared in his mind's eye. He and his teammates… were the same. Was it selfish to not want that same fate?

The blond shinobi pressed his lips into a thin line as he watched his teammates bicker. Out of all the people that he had met, they were the ones he did not want to lose. Sasuke and Mayu—they were his friends and the only family that he has. To have them suddenly despise him. Naruto bowed his head and closed his eyes. He didn't want it. He wished to be closer to them He wished to have more things in common with them. And yet… He did not want to go through the same thing. Sasuke had lost his brother and now wanted nothing more than to kill him. Gaara had lost his uncle and so, he viewed him as a liar—a betrayer. Mayu had lost her closest friends and she became a victim to those friends. The connections that his teammates and Gaara had were not completely severed, yet… they had become so damaged. If his ties to his teammates suddenly became damaged, would he have the strength to go on?

"NA-RU-TO!" The blond was snapped out of his thoughts. Mayu was right in front of him, faces inches away from his. "What's your problem? Didn't you hear me?" The shinobi shook his head.

"Sorry, I was wondering who my opponent was going to be!" Mayu grinned at his response. Naruto returned the grin. "Yeah, it'd be great if it was Sasuke! You already got to fight him. I want my turn, too!"

"What am I—a doorknob?" Sasuke crossed his arms. "Not everyone gets a turn, ya know!"

"THAT'S WHAT SHE SAID!" Both Naruto and Mayu shouted in sync. They both exploded in laughter as Sasuke shook his head. A small smirk played on his lips. What idiotic teammates, he thought.

"Well, isn't this a sight for sore eyes?" Ino's sarcastic voice sneered. The two instantly stopped laughing. Sasuke turned his attention to the blond kunoichi, eyebrow raised. On other side of her were Sakura and Hinata. The Hyuga heir stared down at the floor. Her face was neutral. Sakura, on the other hand, wore a pleasant smile. Ino narrowed her eyes. "_Che_, I just might vomit." Mayu frowned. So they were no longer hiding, huh? The dark-haired kunoichi shook her head, preparing to ignore the trio. However, what Ino said halted her movements. "I'm surprised _your_ teammates aren't stepping in front of you." Mayu's eyebrow twitched as she turned to face the blond.

"Sorry, but_ my_ teammates know that I can handle myself." She folded her arms, showing a smirk. "Or didn't you realize that last night? Should I show you again, Ino-_chan_?"

"What did you just say?" Enraged, the blond kunoichi moved forward. Not backing down, Mayu also moved. The two stood mere inches away from one another. Both wore their best fierce expressions.

"_Girls are scary…"_ Naruto thought.

"Cut it out!" Sasuke stood in between them. His dark eyes focused on the blond. "Back off, Ino."

"Shut up, Sasuke-kun."

"Ino-chan, don't be so mean," Sakura chided. The blond grumbled, and then sharply turned away from the shinobi in front of her. "Forgive her. She's a bit fiery today." Sasuke did not reply. "Anyway, we just wanted to wish Team 7 good luck in your matches. I do hope Mayu-chan doesn't get thoroughly killed." With that, the pink-haired kunoichi walked away. Hinata said nothing and followed after Sakura.

"_She just won't quit, will she?"_ Sasuke narrowed his eyes, watching Sakura's departing back. Her two-sided concerns were getting old. The young Uchiha turned back to Mayu. Noticing her annoyed look, he gripped the back of her neck and pulled her close. "Don't think about it. Focus on something else," he told her. Her blue eyes stared at him for a moment.

"Fine," she said. "I'll just imagine you in a pink tutu. That always helps." For her remark, the kunoichi was put in a headlock. "I was kidding!" Mayu rasped. She reached out for Naruto, but he only shook his head.

Suddenly, Iruka's voice rang out, drawing the attention of the team. "I will now announce the two participants for the next match!" The three genin of Team 7 unconsciously leaned forward. "The two who will now fight are Uzumaki Naruto and-" Unfortunately, they did not hear who he was going to be fighting. The blond, once his name was called off, immediately 'wahoo'd' and jumped from the railing.

"IT'S FINALLY MY TURN, BITCHES! _WHOO_!" His voice seemed to shrink because of his descent. The two teammates left behind said not a word. They blinked once, and then turned to one another.

"I blame you," Sasuke muttered, flatly.

"… Yeah… Can you release me now?"

"No."

"_Aw_, come on, Sasuke!"

"You're noisy."

0~0

Naruto stood, practically wiggling in place as he waited for whoever he was fighting to come down. This was going to be awesome. To think he would have another chance to show everyone how strong he is—this soon—was almost overwhelming. _"I've learned so much since the last chuunin exam…" _His grin practically covered his face. _"I wonder which techniques I should use."_ Twitching, Iruka stared at his former student. He wished that Naruto wouldn't be so excited to fight one of his comrades. But he supposed it couldn't be helped. The remaining ninja were all strong. Anyone one of them had the potential of becoming chuunin. In fact, he was certain that everyone participated were at the level of a chuunin. Well, not everyone. There were a few that he did not know…

His attention was diverted from the blond, whom seem to be exploding exuberance. Naruto's opponent had finally reached the ground. Ah, he remembered that former student. Such a recluse, that one was. Iruka smiled. Hopefully this match would be good for Naruto. Going up against an advanced bloodline—that's something Naruto needed. The scarred man nodded his head in acknowledgement towards the challenger. The blond shinobi didn't seem to take notice that his opponent was standing opposite of him. Iruka shook his head. "It's time to start!" Iruka raised his arm, hopefully getting Naruto's attention. "Let the second match begin!"

The blond shinobi snapped his head up. _"Okay… That's not who I was expecting…"_ Really, he hadn't been expecting anyone in particular, but this person was the last one on his mind as an opponent. Mentally, Naruto shrugged. A fighter is a fighter. It didn't matter who they were. Yeah… It didn't matter who was pitted against him. _"Even if it is you."_ Naruto jumped back, distancing himself. His opponent was Hyuga Hinata. What did he know about her abilities? For starters, he knew about the Gentle Fist. However, that's was not all she had going for her. She was fast. Most likely, she was strong, too. Carrying those metallic weapons around had to give her those qualities. Hinata was the type of fighter who had an advantage in close combat and long-ranged attacks.

He'd give her everything he had.

He raced forward without warning. Naruto's hands came together in his signature hand sign. "**Shadow Clone Jutsu**!" Five clones popped into existence and immediately went on the assault. Hinata was quick to deflect the swinging leg, but she could not evade the other strikes. With the combined effort of the four clones, she was pushed back. The clones dispersed and Naruto rushed through the smoke. His fist launched forward in a barrage of punches. The Hyuga female finally activated her advanced bloodline. Frowning, she thrust her palms forward as she dodged another punch.

"**Heaven's Palm**!" At a rapid pace, her hands struck Naruto's shoulders, stomach, and chest. She reared her hand back, unleashing the final strike up. A swift upper cut to the chin sent the blond in the air. However, the Hyuga was not finished. She followed him up and delivered another attack. "**Aerial Strike**!" Just as fast, her palms focused on his torso. Hinata flipped, bringing her heel down on Naruto's head. "I'm sorry…!"

The blond plummeted to the ground. Hinata landed a few feet away from him. Groaning, Naruto rolled onto his stomach. That was some reflex, he thought. Slowly, he stood, clutching his stomach as he did. This kunoichi was more dangerous than the last time he had seen her fight. Things weren't looking too good for him. Naruto wiped the blood from his chin. "Time to get serious!" He created one clone. That clone was flung at the Hyuga. Hinata barely had time to destroy that clone before another was thrown in the same manner. She stumbled back. The second clone had managed to give a head-butt before it disappeared. "**Human Shuriken**!" Two clones, which were linked by hands, were thrown. Two sets of legs hit, causing Hinata to fall back.

With the help of his chakra, Naruto sped forward, zigzagging across the field. He reached her just as she stood. Curling his fingers, he moved to punch her chest. However, Hinata arms spread out, forming a circle. Her palms pushed her opponent back slightly. She then jumped up, raising her arms to the sky. As she descended, her arms came down, slamming against Naruto's chest. "**Hyuga Style: Exorcism**!" Hinata used her feet to propel herself away from the blond, dealing a bit more damage to him. Naruto slid against the ground as Hinata landed. Suddenly, his body disappeared in a cloud. The kunoichi's eyes widen in horror. "Oh no!"

She turned, only to receive a punch, sending her up. To clones jumped up to her, grasping her arms. They began to fall as the original jumped. Hinata crashed on the causing her to sharply gasp. The damage was worse when Naruto drove his knees into her abdomen. Blood spurt from her open mouth. The blond shinobi flipped away from the kunoichi. Hinata grimaced and grabbed her stomach. That hurt… a lot. She clenched her teeth and shakily stood up. The kunoichi panted heavily as she stared at her opponent. "Wh-Why…?" Breathless, she whispered out. She coughed, drawing Naruto's attention. Hesitantly, he dropped his arms. "Why do you… attack me so… viciously, Naruto-kun?"

Thunder struck in the distance.

"_Huh_? What are you saying?" Naruto was confused.

Hinata inhaled deeply. "Y-You attack me as if…" Her eyes shifted to the ground. "As if I wasn't even… a comrade to you." She looked about ready to shed tears. "Is it because… of what I've done… to _her_?" Naruto's eyes widen in realization. Hinata, not taking notice, swallowed hard. "Sh-She deserved it… I was only pro-protecting Sakura-chan. And you ha-hate me for that… don't you, Naruto-kun?" The blond shinobi's face hardened.

"Listen to yourself!" he shouted, clenching his fists at his sides. "Protecting…? Don't make me mad, Hinata!" Naruto pointed a finger. "What you did was not protecting! You _ganged up_ on Mayu! And for what—lying about her _name_? Yeah, I'm pretty pissed off about it, but I'm not going to bear a grudge against you in the middle of a fight! I'm attacking you like I am because I think you're a strong person!" Hinata's lips parted as Naruto continued. "I would never insult a strong opponent by holding back! No matter what!" The blond suddenly doubled over, gripping his black jacket. "You're strong alright. I'd be stupid if I hold back against you. If I did something like that, I'd probably die." His blue eyes narrowed. "I'm not that kinda of person! And _you_, of all people, should know that!"

The kunoichi sucked in a breath. Her eyes were wide, allowing tears to spill over. Thunder struck again, closer this time. A downpour started. However, the two fighters didn't move or turn they eyes away from each other. "Because it's our nindo-" More tears fell, blending in with the rain on her cheeks. "-Our ni-ninja way…" Hinata squeezed her eyes shut. Honestly, she felt so bad. This shinobi in front of was so… beautiful. The Hyuga heir wiped at her face, leaving behind nothing but the rain. "I'm sorry, Naruto-kun." She gave a tiny small. "I haven't been following that… I am not how I should be right now." The kunoichi slowly unzipped her jacket, and then slid it off her shoulders. "I have been holding back, and letting things distract me. I apologize for that." She dropped down into a stance, stretching her arm beyond the other. "I, too, will get serious then."

Naruto almost blanched. She wasn't being serious this entire time? Crap, he thought. Maybe he was in trouble. The blond gave a smirk, though. Still, he had something cool up his sleeve. He wasn't worried… too much, anyway. "So you were holding out on me?" Naruto quickly removed his own jacket and tossed it to the side. It had become heavy due to the excess water. Under his dark orange shirt, he wore a long-sleeve fishnet top. The shinobi reached a hand into his leg holster and pulled out three kunai. "Then show me how strong your nindo is!" He shot the projectiles at the kunoichi.

She retaliated by digging into her weapon's pouch. She flung her own weapon at the oncoming blades. To Naruto's surprise, her metallic weapon was stronger and slice through the kunai, rendering them useless. His eyes grew wide. With such speed, the humming blades were still coming his way. He quickly jumped up to avoid the blades and the chakra. That's when Hinata through the second one. Shit, he thought. The blond quickly performed his trademark jutsu. A chain of Naruto clones appeared in the way of the deadly weapon. Right before the last clone was destroyed by Hinata's weapon, it launched the original down toward the Hyuga. Naruto reared his fist back, preparing to strike.

The sudden burst of speed was surprising, but Hinata was faster. With her left hand, she knocked Naruto's outstretched wrist to the side. She then followed up with a right palm thrust to his abdomen. The blond literally gagged as he was pushed back up. Hinata gave another strike with her left hand, causing him to go higher. Hurriedly, she made hand signs. The rain around her seemed to halt. She moved her arms in a graceful, fluid motion. "**Protective Water Orb Jutsu**!" The rain combined and formed a half sphere around the kunoichi. The shinobi above her began to fall. _"Are you ready for this, Naruto-kun?"_ Her flowing movements seemed to control the sphere. A stream of water suddenly lashed out at her opponent. It wrapped around his ankles. Inside the orb, Hinata waved her arms around faster. The water around thrashed, swinging the screaming blond to and fro. Finally, the kunoichi stopped, and then brought down her arm in a slicing motion. The stream of water mimicked her movements, slamming Naruto against the ground. The muddy ground cushioned his fall, but not much.

0~0

Mayu winced as her teammate came crashing down. She let out a strained breath, realizing he was not getting up. "_Eh_, Sasuke, I'm a little bit worried now!" The young Uchiha did not respond, but he, too, felt the same way. "Hinata—she's gotten so strong. If I were up against her, I'd probably forfeit!" Her dark-haired teammate shot her a look. "Well, I would. Just imagining the damage to Naruto's chakra system gives me chills!" The kunoichi pursed her lips. "Do you think he can-"

"Of course he can—it's Naruto." Sasuke's eyes shifted back to his fallen teammate. Mayu did the same. "Have you forgotten what's inside? He hasn't even used it yet. And besides, he can heal quickly now, or did you forget the training we had him do?" The kunoichi gave a half glare.

"I didn't forget… It just slipped my mind is all." Her teammate rolled his eyes. The young Ishikari sighed. "But that isn't perfected yet… It's not like he can use it at any time."

"I think Hinata has set things up great."

"I guess all we can do is wait."

"_Hn_… Now shut up, I'm trying to focus."

"Oh, up yours, Sasuke!"

0~0

Down below, Naruto was struggling to stay conscious. The pain was almost unbearable. That last attack—he wasn't expecting an elemental jutsu to come from a Hyuga. It had left him flat on his stomach, trying to overcome pain. The blond squeezed his eyes shut, clenching his fists. It couldn't let it end like this. He had to keep going. His super awesome jutsu hadn't even been used. He had really wanted to show off. _"Come on…! Concentrate!"_ Naruto curled his midsection. His entire body hurt like hell.

Unknown to him, Hinata watched from afar. She narrowed her eyes. The wind around her opponent had suddenly picked up. A gust of wind nearly knocked her over. _"It's warm!"_ The kunoichi shielded her face, eyes still on Naruto. Stunned, she could clearly see his chakra coils being rejuvenated. She gasped sharply when the shinobi stood. The injuries she had inflicted—they were healing! _"How can this be? I don't understand!"_ The chakra had seeped through, covering Naruto's body like a veil. Hinata's eyebrows furrowed as her opponent created a clone. The original held out his palm. Rapidly, the clone moved his hands over the palm. Chakra was being gathered in the palm of his hand! Her eyes glanced at her fallen weapons for a moment. She had stopped concentrating on them and focused on the water jutsu, so they would be of no use to her. Whatever Naruto was about to use, it was going to be powerful.

The Hyuga inhaled deeply through her nose and stood up straight. Concentrating, she formed a one hand ram sign. Ready, she opened her eyes. In Naruto's hand, there was a swirling mass of chakra. More than likely, it was his final attack. Hinata began to move her arms, slicing at the air around her. _"Faster, faster, faster! Stronger, stronger, stronger! More, more, more!"_ As the kunoichi chanted in her mind, the speed of her arms increased. _"I am not going to disappoint you anymore, Naruto-kun, so come!"_

Naruto could feel the intensity of Hinata's stare. The clone disappeared from his side. She was definitely giving it her all. Pushing his chakra from his feet, the shinobi shot like a bullet through the rain. Eyes wide, he unleashed his ultimate jutsu. "**RASENGAN**!" The attack collided with Hinata's shield. The two jutsu pushed against each other, trying to gain an advantage. Naruto grit his teeth. With this attack of his, he realized that if his will was strong enough, it could make it through anything. All he had to do was focus. However, his blue eyes shifted from the ball in his hand.

The world of around them seemed to come to a complete stop. It was as though the two fighters had been enveloped by a white light. Naruto's eyes widen. His opponent was smiling. She stared at him with a look of satisfaction. The kunoichi closed her eyes. "Naruto-kun… Thank you." The blond blinked in confusion.

Just like that, Hinata's defense wavered, giving the swirling chakra the edge it needed to break through. "Hinata…!" The blond sharply veered his arm. However, his attack still struck. Naruto gapped as her scream fill his ears. The kunoichi was sent spiraling away. The Hyuga crashed into the wall, cracking it under the pressure. She grimaced in obvious pain. The wall crumbled, causing her to slip. Naruto quickly rushed forward. He caught her just before she hit the ground. By then, she was unconscious. Blue eyes quickly surveyed the damaged. He frowned. Her shoulder, which had taken the hit, was now rugged and deformed. The shinobi swiftly turned his head to his former sensei.

Umino Iruka flinched, appearing to be flustered. He shook his head a bit before throwing his arm up. "I declare this fight over! Uzumaki Naruto is the winner of the second match!" The blond was gone before Iruka could finish.

0~0

Sasuke and Mayu ran up to their teammate. They stopped in front of him. Naruto leaned against the wall. He had just handed his fallen opponent over to the medic ninja. He was standing right outside the room where she was. His blue eyes stared down at the floor. His eyelids covered the top half of his eyes. There was also a frown on his face. Minutes passed, and yet the three did not say anything. "Naruto…" Mayu began, but then shifted her gaze to the corner. Honestly, she didn't know what to say. She knew that words were exchanged between her teammate and Hinata, yet she did not know what exactly was said. She and Sasuke decided not to waste any chakra, so trying to hear what was going on didn't happen. It wasn't like she could congratulate him, not when he was like this.

"You know…" Naruto said, getting his teammates' attention. "Hinata's… not a bad person."

Inside the room, eyes fluttered open. The Hyuga could feel her body slowly healing. Medics were attending to her. She stared up at the ceiling, thinking back to the fight with her inspiration. Her body had grown tired—so tired that she could not keep up with him. While he had discovered his second wind, she did not. _"But I wonder…"_ Hinata thought. _"That chakra was so different."_ Finally, the medics walked away. The kunoichi closed her eyes, hoping to rest. However, could hear mumbling. It was coming from right outside. Hinata turned her head, straining to hear what was being said.

"I can't stop thinking about what she said to me." It was Naruto's voice. "Days before the chuunin exam—the last one—I was feeling the pressure. I felt like I hadn't learned anything—like I wasn't ready. That's when I ran into Hinata on the street. I don't know if she noticed or not, but… what she said to me actually helped me in my training. After talking to her, I felt confident. After that, things seemed to be going great." Hinata's eyebrows knitted together. Was he… talking about her? "And then… in my fight against that Sand kunoichi, I also lost the will to go on. I had forgotten, but now I remember. She said that she still believed in me even though I was face down on the ground. Hinata actually _shouted_ for me." So he had been talking about her! The kunoichi felt her face warm. "That gave me the strength to stand even though I didn't know who is at the time. So… Like I said, Mayu, Hinata's not a bad person. She may have done that to you last night, but deep down, she can't be a bad person. I _know_ she isn't!"

Mayu…? He was talking to Ishikari Mayu.

"You dork, Naruto. Of course Hinata's not a bad person," a female's voice replied. Hinata's eyes widen. "No matter what she did to me, I just can't see her that way."

"Your guilty feelings are what caused you to wind up in that situation."

"Shut up, Sasuke. It was not guilt… well, mostly. Having her and Ino hate me hurts a lot, so I just let those things happen, hoping that-" The kunoichi stopped and sighed. "Never mind that… The point is that just because they may have come to hate me, I can't bring myself to hate them. I've always liked Hinata, so I know she's a good person. I don't blame her, Naruto. There's no need to worry about me not being able to forgive her."

"I think you're being stupid. Those three could come after you again."

"I won't be stupid, bird brain. I know not to get physically hurt again." There was a sound of a punch landing on skin. "_OW_! What was that for?"

"What do you think, cocoon girl?"

"I'm so glad!" Naruto heaved a sigh of relief. There was a moment of silence.

"Why are you so worked up anyway, Naruto?" Sasuke's voice asked. "It sounds like you're in love with the girl." The pink shade of Hinata's blush turned bright red. "Yeah, and what you did after your fight seems like you like her a lot, too. I was surprised you caught her and carried her all the way here."

"_Eh_..?"

"_Ehhhh_?" Mayu's exclamation sounded more excited than Naruto's panic-stricken one. "What's this—a major development in the NaruHina Movement?" Mayu's voice gushed enthusiasm.

"Wh-What? What the hell is NaruHina?"

"You're blushing, Naruto."

"Sh-Sh-Shut up, Sasuke!" Naruto's voice roared. The sound of giggling entered Hinata's ears, as well as departing footsteps. "And get back here, Mayu! Don't go thinking weird things!" Fast-paced footsteps were heard again.

Hinata waited a moment before actually breathing. She shifted her head straight and closed her eyes. Her face felt like fire. It happened every time 'NaruHina' was mentioned. The kunoichi felt like shaking her head. One would think she would be used to it by now. Hinata's eyes suddenly snapped open, and then narrowed. She showed her teeth in a frown. Sakura used to joke around a lot with her. Well, Mayu, as Sakura, had joked with her. Remembering that felt awful. The door suddenly slid open, causing Hinata to turn her head. She was shocked to see Uchiha Sasuke standing there.

His piercing gazed eyed her for a brief second before focusing on the medic ninja in the room. They had quickly looked away, busying themselves with something else. The young Uchiha settled his sharp gaze on her again. Hinata moved to sit up, wincing at the pain she felt. She grabbed her right shoulder. "Sa-Sasuke-sa-san…? Wh-What is it?" He narrowed his eyes into a glare. The shinobi opened his mouth.

"I am not like them," he said. "Mayu may forgive you and Naruto may _say_ you're just confused, but if I catch you—or even _think_ you're—laying your hands on my teammate again, I will come after you, Ino, and Sakura. With all my might, I _will_ crush the three of you." Hinata found herself shivering. Sasuke turned to go. The kunoichi found her voice, though, stopping him in his tracks.

"Would you do the same for Naruto-kun?" The Uchiha turned his head. "If it were him instead, would you do and say the same?"

"Are you implying that Naruto is being bullied?"

Hinata swallowed hard. Bullying…? Is that what she had been doing? She felt even more awful now that it was brought to her attention. "N-No… I am only curious of your answer." Sasuke stared at her out of the corner of her eye.

"I don't have to answer you," he replied. "But yes… I would do the same in an instant." Hinata clutched the fabric covering her heart. The beat had skipped. Sasuke's feelings for his teammates were so intense and pure—through his voice and eyes, she could sense it clearly. "If that's all…" The door slid shut behind him.

After a few moments of silence, a medic told her that she should rest her body. Stiffly nodding her head, Hinata returned to her horizontal position. Facing the ceiling, Hinata closed her eyes again. However, the silence was broken once again. The door slid open. This time, Hinata did not bother to look. She was tired, after all. "Hinata," a familiar voice caused her eyes to open. Hinata turned her head to the side again. It was Haruno Sakura. "Good—it looks like you weren't beat too badly. I can't believe he did that to you. She must have really convinced him to despise you." The dark-haired kunoichi chose not to respond. Unperturbed, Sakura went on. "You know he just left you there?" she asked. Lie—it was a lie. The green-eyed girl shook her head. "Just like last night, he just walked away. I'm beginning to not approve of your crush-"

"Sakura-san," Hinata interrupted. "I won't do it."

"What?"

Hinata rolled over, not wanting to face her fellow kunoichi. She squeezed her eyes shut again. "I won't do it," she repeated. "I will not help you anymore. I can't believe I lost myself, stooping to such a level for you." The Hyuga heir breathed in. "Whatever you have planned for Ishikari-san, I won't be a part of it. I am truly sorry for the things that happened because she inhabited your body. I'm truly sorry for you and your mother. But I do not hate Ishikari-san." She sucked in a breath. "I thought we were friends, Sakura-san, but you were just using me to hurt her, weren't you?" Sakura did not give a reply, prompting Hinata to go on. "I am not your pawn, and I refuse to be viewed as such any longer. If you hate Ishikari-san so much, then hate her and hurt her by yourself." She slowly opened her eyes. "Please leave me now." Because her head was turned, Hinata missed the grinding of Sakura's teeth.

0~0

Tayuya impatiently tapped her bicep as she waited for the next match to be announced. Apparently, the rain was not expected and it was holding up the process. The former Sound kunoichi released a heavy sigh. Her brown eyes stared down at the floor. Really, it didn't matter who was up next. The genin of this forsaken village were stronger than she first believed. However, they were still trash. Anyone that she was paired up with would lose to her, curse mark or not.

She narrowed her eyes. No matter what, she could not use the mark given to her by Orochimaru. She would be shot with a tranquilizer instantly. This village—that old man—did not trust her. Tayuya closed her eyes. _"Like it fucking matters,"_ she thought. The kunoichi scoffed lightly. She was still a prisoner of war… Well, not exactly. She had made a deal so that she could continue to live. However, she felt like a prisoner. Never would she call the Leaf her home.

"Attention, everyone!" Tayuya lifted her head a bit. The proctor for this exam had finally started speaking. It was surprising that his voice could be heard over the downpour. "It seems as though the rain will not stop anytime soon. With that being said… The special chuunin exam will continue as planned." Cheers from the audience overtook his voice for a moment. "The next match will now start. Will the two fighters, Tenten and Tayuya, please come down?"

The red-haired kunoichi opened her eyes. She completely lifted her head. Her eyes scanned the occupants of the waiting room. However, there was no one that looked as if their name had been called. Raising her brow, Tayuya pushed herself from the wall. "Someone sure is eager." A male's voice caused the kunoichi to turn in the direction it came from. Her eyes settled on a Hyuga. He was one of the two who had killed her former comrade. Hyuga Neji's eyes were on the field, though. And he seemed to be… talking to himself? "Well, I suppose that's normal seeing as she hasn't gotten a chance to show her skills properly." Tayuya almost rolled her eyes. Yeah, he definitely was talking to himself.

"_What an idiot…"_ She turned, and headed for the stairs. So her opponent had already jumped down, did she? What was with the ninja of this village? Was everyone excited about this? In the Sound village, there were no ranks. You were either strong or weak. There was one leader and the rest were mere servants.

The kunoichi made her way down the stairs, hoping to end things quickly with whoever her opponent was. She suddenly heard footsteps. Tayuya looked up, seeing her teammate walking up the steps. She involuntarily flinched. Clenching her teeth, she averted her eyes. _"Damn it… That stupid bitch just has to get in my way!"_ Gulping, Tayuya slightly increased her pace. She made it pass the kunoichi without exchanging words. The former Sound ninja almost released a sigh of relief. However, her footsteps suddenly stopped. Tayuya kept going until her voice made her freeze.

"Tayu-chan." She flinched again, eyes going wide. "Good luck with your match." Tayuya did not say anything in return. "But really… win or lose, you won't make it to chuunin." Her teammate chuckled lightly. "They wouldn't make someone so weak into a chuunin. Honestly, I don't know how you were seen as a threat in the first place." Tayuya's face broke out in a cold sweat. "No matter what you do, you'll always been a loser and a coward—not worth _anything_ to _anyone_." Sakura laughed outright. "But good luck anyway." Her footsteps continued up, leaving Tayuya on the steps alone.

The kunoichi bowed her head. She then began to move forward again. The sound of the rain grew louder as she grew closer to the entrance of the field. "Fuck her…! Fuck this village! I don't need any of these damn rats!" Although, she angrily growled this out, her mind couldn't help but flash the memory of Kin and Kiba teasing each other before her eyes. Tayuya closed her eyes, going right through the image. She hated to admit it, but Haruno Sakura was right.

No matter what, she would always be alone.

* * *

Finished December 26, 2010

Just before the New Year! That was my goal all along –cue smiley face-!

**Naruto VS Hinata**: In the beginning, I was dreading this fight. But once I got started, I couldn't stop! I finished the fight in one seating. It was the rest of the chapter that took forever to do. I wish the readers can vividly see the same things I saw in my head. It was just _too_ amazing. Not to toot my own horn, though. Hinata, Hinata—she's really amazing. I kinda _wanted_ her to win. So, this fight, in my opinion, was a bit better than Naruto's fight against Temari. Because Naruto's stronger, I could work with him a bit better than before.

Next time: … _Afraid To_…


	30. Afraid To

She had lost.

Her body had become undeniably tired. It had been beaten and virtually useless. Tenten, her opponent, was a both a long-ranged and short-ranged fighter. Tayuya just didn't have the skills to defeat someone like her. Slowly, her eyes closed. The rain beat down on her body. Still, it did a sufficient job at soothing her bruises. That girl's skills at using the pair of tonfa hurt the most. Tayuya sighed out, hearing the proctor declare her opponent as the winner. "That was a good battle." It was the voice of her opponent. The former Sound kunoichi opened her eyes to see Tenten standing over her, bent at the wait and holding out her hand as if to _help her_. The Leaf kunoichi gave a smile. "For a minute, I felt like I was going to lose." Tayuya found the strength to raise her hand and smack Tenten's wrist. The girl frowned.

"I… I don't need your fucking pity," she rasped as her arm fell limply at her side. Tayuya sighed again as she turned her head. She felt so… _pathetic_. She hadn't felt this bad even when she was defeated by Kimimaro. At least she could use her full power at that time.

"_Haaaah_…? I'm not giving pity. That was a compliment. You're seriously one of the strongest ninja that I've ever went up against." The kunoichi gave a pause. "You're fast. I had a hard time keeping up with you. As my comrade, you have to tell me how you've trained yourself." Tayuya's eyes snapped open. "In exchange, I'll show you something, too." The teen turned her head. Tenten still wore that smile. She outstretched her hand yet again. "This isn't pity. I'm just showing respect to a worthy opponent."

Respect…?

The word floated through her mind like a single fish swimming against the current. Tayuya gritted and clenched her fists. "Fucking pansies…" she murmured, turning her eyes back to Tenten. This whole village was full of them. The standing kunoichi sported a tight frown, having heard the insult. However, her arm did not drop. Sighing again, Tayuya lifted her arm. From the contact, she received a static shock. Her eyes widen as she was pulled on her feet. She then narrowed her eyes. The sounds of the audience cheering were ignored in favor of glaring. "You only won," Tayuya told her. "Because I couldn't use my full potential." Tenten smirked, dropping her arm.

"Yeah, yeah, that's what they all say, Tayu-_chan_."

Tayuya's eye twitched as she watched Tenten walk away. _"What is it with these damn rats calling me that?" _The kunoichi roughly crossed her arms, and then winced. Her body still ached. Tayuya slowly walked, avoiding stepping on that girl's countless weapons. She had come to dread that nickname. Having more people call her that would only succeed in pissing her off. Brown eyes glared at the ground as she walked. Though, now that she thought about it, the shortened version of her name sounded different. The way her supposed teammate said it made her feel like trash. That damn foreign had called her 'Tayu-chan' as well, and it made her feel like some sort of _pet_. And then this ordinary kunoichi comes along and calls her that as well. _"Funny…"_ she thought. _"It didn't completely make my skin crawl when she said it."_

Once she was hidden from the spectators, Tayuya collapsed against the stone wall. The impact of her shoulder against the wall brought on a hiss of pain. _"Shit…!"_ Of course, there would be no medics for her. She was still an enemy and would be viewed as such until her last day in this village. At a snail's pace, she nearly dragged her body down the hall. She didn't even want to think about what would happen when she reached stairs. Tayuya scoffed lightly and willed herself to go on.

Footsteps entered her ears, causing the Tayuya to look up. At the base of the steps, a kunoichi stood—Haruno Sakura. Her arms were crossed under her chest. Tayuya almost rolled her eyes. She did not feel like dealing with this person right now. "My, my, Tayu-chan. That match went as I predicted." Sakura chuckled lightly. "You were like a cornered rat, trying to scurry its way out of danger." The pink-haired kunoichi gave a callous smirk. Tayuya bared her teeth. Sakura seemed to pay no mind to that. She closed her eyes in a false grin. "Kin's weaker than you and yet you lost. It was a horrible display. Really, I'm ashamed to be on the same team as you. It would have been better if you were killed since you're so usele-"

Sakura had stopped, most likely noticing that Tayuya was no longer listening. She had forced her body to quickly walk pass her teammate before she could finish whatever she was about to say. "Bite me, bitch." Tayuya did not see Sakura's lips twitch. If she did, perhaps she would have been prepared for what happened next.

Her already weakened body was slammed against the wall, causing Tayuya to cry out. Sakura's fingers wrapped around her throat and attempted to cut off her airway. "You seem to _forget_ who it is you're dealing with." Tayuya squeezed her eyes shut. Her body felt numb and rigid all at the same time. She felt another hand around her neck. "Well, allow me to fill you in." Sakura's grip became tighter. "I'm your worst nightmare. I'm the reason you scream. I'm the reason you cry." Her dark chuckles filled her right ear. "I'm the reason for your sad attempt at suicide." Tayuya's eyes snapped open in shock. "Oh yes, Tayu-chan. I know all about that. Drowning yourself-" She laughed. "-How utterly _stupid_ of you. You can't escape your fate. You can't escape me."

"F-Fuck… yo-you…" Tayuya's teeth chattered. Still, she managed to get out her distaste. Sakura raised a pink brow.

"Fuck me…?" It was her innocent act that pissed Tayuya off the most. "Tayu-chan, I'm only one you've _got_." She smiled and tilted her head a bit. "No one cares for you. Whether it's like or dislike… Face it, Tayuya. You're merely a walking shadow. Now, that you've remembered, I-"

"Hey! What do you think you're doing?"

Sakura's hands were snatched away from Tayuya's throat. She almost gagged as she fell to the floor. She coughed out as she touched her throat. Her esophagus wasn't crushed, but there would definitely be bruises on her neck. "_Hmmm_…? We weren't doing anything exciting," Sakura answered with a shrug. "This is just training. It's to prevent us from falling unconscious if the same happens to us on missions, right, Tayu-chan?" Tayuya clenched her teeth and didn't answer. It was still hard to breath. "Well, anyway, good job at beating her, Tenten. It was fun to see such a battle." Tayuya closed her eyes, listening to her teammate walk away.

"_Hm_…" A hand touched her shoulder, causing Tayuya to flinch. "Something tells me she was lying. Are you alright?" She shook her head. Tenten narrowed her eyes. "I knew something was up when you didn't show." Her arm was placed over Tenten's shoulders. "Come on, I'll take you." There was no protest coming from the kunoichi as she was lifted off the floor. They moved in silence. "Why does she treat you like that?" Tenten finally broke that silence. "Better yet, why do you let her? You didn't come off as someone who'd let anyone push you around."

"… But she's right… I'm weak, pathetic, and no one cares." Tayuya bowed her head. "And why would they when I'm so useless?" Her brown eyes shifted to the right. "If I saw someone like me, I'd refer to them as trash and probably do the same thing."

"I see… but I don't think you're weak. I mean, sure you lost to me, but losing doesn't make you weak." Tayuya knitted her brows. "I think it's just that your confidence has dropped. With you being in a new place and all. Everything must be foreign to you still and you're not used to it." Tenten shrugged her shoulders. "I know about you, Tayuya, which is why I was so excited to fight you. You were a member of an elite squad when you were a Sound kunoichi. And now that I've fought you, I knew why you were elite." She failed to realize the incredulous look she was receiving. "You're only feeling the way you do now because your self-esteem dropped, and I guess Sakura has been telling you all sorts of things, too, huh? I thought she was dangerous, but I couldn't imagine something like this."

Tayuya bowed her head again. Her lips formed into a thin line. "Why…? Why are you being like this?" Tenten stopped. Her brown eyes stared ahead. The Leaf kunoichi frowned a bit, and then shrugged. She continued forward, causing Tayuya to become a bit angry. She shoved Tenten away. In the process, she had moved away, pushing herself against the wall. "I asked a question, bitch!" she shouted. "Why are you doing this? What do you want from me?"

Tenten blinked. "I'm not sure…" she murmured. "Maybe it's because you're just like me." Tayuya's eyes widen, and then narrowed. She demanded to know what Tenten meant. "_Hm_, I wonder…" The kunoichi turned, locking her fingers behind her back. "You see, I'm not originally from the Leaf either. I was a foreign orphan just like you. So I think I felt the same thing you're feeling." Tayuya didn't speak. Just what was she supposed to say to that? "You won't always feel this way. It gets better if you let it. One day, you'll accept this village as your home just like I did." Tenten sharply turned. "It's not like I want anything from you… Well, unless you count wanting you to get over this, so we can have a rematch." She smiled. "I'm looking forward to that."

"… What type of a fucking motive is that?"

Tenten twitched.

"Still…" Tayuya turned her eyes away. "Thank you… or whatever, but I'll never call this place home."

"You never know, Tayu-chan! It could grow on you!"

"Like mold…"

"_Huh_?"

"Nothing, and don't fucking call me that!" Tayuya winced again and coughed out. "Damn it! This hurts so much. I'm going to beat your ass next time. And I'm going to break those damn tonfa of yours, too."

"Such a mouth you have, Tayu-chan."

"Didn't you hear what I said, shithead?"

0~0

Sasuke's dark eyes watched as his former sensei helped to pick up the countless weapons that were scattered across the field. At their pace, there was no telling when the next fight would begin. He let out a sigh. He had written off that kunoichi before, but seeing her fight now made him rethink his previous opinion of her. "Tenten's better than I thought." Sasuke voiced his judgment, causing his two teammates to turn to him. "Not only can she throw the weapons, she can use each one individually if need be." Mayu nodded her head.

"Yeah, in her fight against Temari, she didn't get to show that ability." She sighed. "Tenten really _is_ a weapon mistress."

"Her taijutsu is pretty good, too," Naruto commented. "Since she's on a team with Neji and Bushy-Brow, I guess she would pick up on the technique."

"The question is… How do we defeat someone like her?" Mayu crossed her arms. "Being both a long-ranged fighter and a short-ranged fighter, she has the potential to be the perfect warrior. Tenten also has the eyes. She spotted Tayuya's hiding place each time it was established."

"Regardless of that, Tenten isn't very fast," Sasuke stated. "Anyone of us could take her in regards to speed. But what her body lacks, her weapons make up for. Without my Sharingan, I could not see what was being thrown."

"Yeah, if that Tayuya girl hadn't been so fast, she would have been impaled!" Naruto looked up in thought. "The source of Tenten's power comes from her scrolls. She immediately puts distance between her foes, so I'd say get her before she has a chance to do that."

"Okay, so what about Tayuya?" Mayu questioned.

"She's got speed on her side, which is why she could almost always evade Tenten," Sasuke said. "However, taijutsu is her weakest point, while genjutsu is her strongest. If Tenten didn't have the keen eyes she does, Tayuya would have won the match."

"I agree. Tenten didn't give Tayuya the chance to use her flute. When she did, Tenten covered up the noise of the flute with an explosion, thus breaking free of Tayuya's genjutsu." Mayu tapped her chin thoughtfully. "As Tenten as her opponent, it was pretty much a one-sided battle. If it wasn't Tenten, then maybe Tayuya could have won."

"I'm surprised she didn't use her curse mark. I'm guessing she's forbidden to do so. I find it hard to believe that someone as close to Orochimaru as she isn't a threat in battle." Sasuke's teammates nodded in agreement.

His eyelids lowered a bit as he watched the rain fall. Curse marks, he thought. The young Uchiha did not know much about them, so discussing it with his teammates wouldn't do any good. Still, he was curious. He had seen Tayuya's mark spread. Although it had been of a different design, it was much like the time when in the Forest of Death. His teammate, in the body of another, had become so much stronger. The chakra was dark, though—as if it fed on fear and anguish. It had turned Mayu into a completely different person. Sasuke sighed as he closed his eyes. That experience was awful. Tayuya's mark did the same. However, there was something different. At one point, the mark completely covered the teen's body. She had undergone a transformation, becoming even stronger.

Dark eyes focused on his ignorant female teammate. "What would have happened to you if you kept something like that?" Sasuke quickly averted his gaze because he had imaged Mayu with marks all over her body. _"I wouldn't be able to forgive myself…" _He shoved his hands into his pockets. Whether it had been Naruto or her, he wouldn't be able to forgive himself if one of them still had to rely on something like that. _He_ had been Orochimaru's target. How would things be different if Mayu hadn't taken that bite for him?

Sasuke mentally shook his head. It would do him no good pondering _what ifs_. What did matter at the moment was his team, and nothing else. The young Uchiha allowed a tiny smile to cross his face. His teammates were grabbing each other's cheeks and stretching them out. Apparently, Mayu had been teasing Naruto about getting to fight Sasuke again. And the blond had called her 'cocoon girl' to spite her. He chuckled and closed his eyes. This team was important to him—more significant than anything else. If anything were to happen to them-

_I do hope Mayu-chan doesn't get thoroughly killed._

Suddenly, he felt like punching something. Curse mark or not, Sakura's behavior toward his teammate was uncalled for. Sasuke narrowed his eyes into a glare. Manipulating others into hurting Mayu—she had gone too far. Sakura's hatred for his teammate would not have bothered him in the least _if_ she had not taken the actions she did. First, she vandalized Mayu's apartment. Then she caused Mayu's friends to turn on her. Next, she had the nerve to resort to bullying. Sasuke's teeth grind together. Most likely, he would not overlook the things Mayu went through because of her.

He turned his eyes to the rain again. If Mayu hadn't been the way she was, and as a result fell into a depression, Sasuke would never forgive Haruno Sakura. According to statistics, bullying usually resorted to suicide whether it was amongst civilians or ninja. He'd been damned before he let that happen to either one of his teammates. Naruto and Mayu—they were forgiving by nature. Not him… He could and would hold a grudge until his dying day.

Thunder struck.

"_Ooooh_!" Mayu shivered dramatically, which caused Sasuke to give her a flat look. "This weather—I imagine a lot of us are going to get sick! Chouji and Kin were the lucky ones." The kunoichi hugged her body. "I hope it stops raining soon! I can't bear to get wet."

"You really are like a cat, Mayu." The blond shinobi slowly batted towards his teammate. "Is wittle kitty, kitty afraid of a wittle water?"

"Have an instant bowl of shutty, Naruto! You're the one who should be afraid! I'd hate it if I smelled like a wet dog!" Mayu poked her tongued out.

"I will now announce the fourth match!" Iruka called out, halting the oncoming argument. Sasuke almost rolled his eyes. When did his teammates become as crazy about watching a fight as they were actually fighting? "The two genin who will fight are Uchiha Sasuke and Haruno Sakura!"

"_Eh_?" Mayu exclaimed. "That doesn't make sense!"

Sasuke only smirked.

"Why would they have him fighting her when technically they already fought?" Mayu shook her head in confusion.

"I don't know and I _don't_ care." The young Uchiha stepped closer to the railing. For a moment, he merely stared down at his former sensei. The man now held an umbrella. Lucky him. Sasuke hopped on the railing. "This is my chance."

"Chance…? Chance for what?" Naruto asked.

"_Eh_… Please tell me you're not bringing personal feelings into this!"

Sasuke glanced back at his teammates. The smirk hadn't left his face. "Now why would I do that? Emotions would only cloud my judgment." Mayu's eye twitched. She knew he was being sarcastic. His kunoichi teammate moved forward. She told him that she knew what he was thinking, and that he didn't need to. Sasuke scoffed. "I know I don't need to, but… I want to." He grabbed her wrist. Her blue eyes widened. "You're too kind, so when push comes to shove, I'll be the one shoving."

"Sasuke, you…"

"I'll make this short, so lecture me later!" The young Uchiha released her, turned, and then jumped from the railing.

0~0

Tsunade blinked once before raising an eyebrow. Her brown eyes shifted to her former mentor, whom sat beside her. The two were sitting in an area for Kage only. They were very good seats. In addition, the weather did not affect them in the least. "_Hm_…? Why did you pick these two again?" She turned back to the field. Uchiha Sasuke had already made it to the field. His shoulders were hunched and his arms were cross in an attempt to ignore the rain. With each passing second, he looked more and more aggravated. Perhaps it was the rain, or perhaps it was his opponent who had yet to show herself—whatever it was, he was bound to snap soon.

"Yes, I wonder…" Tsunade's eyebrow twitched as she listened to the previous Hokage chuckle to himself.

"_Since he was in charge of picking the pairings, he must have good reason for doing this."_ Her brows knitted together as she watched the young Uchiha. _"It couldn't have been just on a whim. Just what are you expecting, Sarutobi-sensei?"_

0~0

"Hey, didn't those two already fight each other?"

"Haruno… Haruno… Yeah, actually, I think they did!"

"But why would they have another matchup? I thought this thing was random."

"Who cares? That girl has what it takes to go against Uchiha Sasuke! This fight is bound to be as explosive as the other one—maybe even better since they must have gotten stronger!"

"_Haah_, I guess you're right."

Yasmine, having heard the conversation, tilted her head to the side. Mayu had mentioned that she had seriously battled Sasuke while she was in the body of Haruno Sakura. Apparently, she had almost been victorious. This sparked the debate over the kunoichi being Mary-Sue, which caused Mayu to eventually knock her upside the head. The debate had no conclusion. The foreigner mentally shook her head. She was digressing again.

The point was that if this was randomized like the guy said, then obviously those two wouldn't be paired up again. In the canon world of _Naruto_, no one ever had a rematch. Once a fight happened, it did not happen again with the same people. Even if this was a special event, the odds of it happening again did not seem plausible. _"Someone must have arranged this fight on purpose…"_

Beside her, Sawatari Jano crossed his arms and chuckled. "This is great," he said. "I heard that the fight between these two was unexpected. I'm glad I have this chance to see it."

"Ne, Jano-san… You didn't see their fight before?" The man shook his head. "_Ah_, probably boozing it up, right?" The former ANBU member hunched over, twitching. Too cruel, he murmured. Yasmine turned her eyes back to the field. Haruno Sakura had yet to show herself. "It won't be the same, I bet. Mayu's fighting style must be different from Sakura's." Her eyes suddenly widen. _"Their styles are different! Someone obviously wants people to know that, which is why they're paired up again! And if that's the case, then this isn't random at all!"_ Yasmine mentally gave herself a pat on the back for figuring it out. Those _Sherlock Holmes_ books really paid off. _"But why…?"_

**Whatever the reason, I can't wait to see her get her ass beat. **

Yasmine ignored the chuckling from her alter ego. Yasume's loathing for the kunoichi was a bit silly. _"Someone wants everyone to see the distinction probably for Mayu's benefit. Hah… Mayu really is Mary-Sue."_

0~0

The kunoichi of Team 7 gnawed on her thumb and nail. It seemed like her eyes were trying to catch each raindrop before it hit the ground. Naruto watched her for a moment before raising his brow. "Mayu, what the hell? You're acting like Sasuke's gonna _lose_!" The young Ishikari turned with a stunned expression, and then took her thumb out of her mouth.

"I would never think that!" she stated. _"Not against this person, anyway…"_ Mayu decided not to say that out loud just in case Sasuke could hear. Her teammate had a knack for hearing anything that even sounded like an insult to him. And he always paid her or Naruto back for their insolence. She shuddered at the thought of what happened the last time she and the blond made the mistake of mocking his hairstyle. Kakashi had found them two hours later, bounded and dangling from a tree branch by the very rope that entrapped them. He had left them for the hungry wolves below. The Uchiha was such a sensitive little jerk…

"Then why do you look so worried?"

"I have the upmost confidence in my teammate. However, I don't want him thinking of something else while fighting!" Mayu suddenly released a heavy sigh. "Especially not… about… my situation… I don't want him thinking he has to salvage my honor, or something."

"But that's just how Sasuke is." Naruto locked his fingers behind his head. He noticed the look he received. "Don't look so surprised, Mayu. I may not be as observant as you or anyone else for that matter, but I can tell with Sasuke." His grin dropped, and so did his arms. "He's not like us. Sasuke's an avenger." Mayu froze, eyes going wide. She then looked away, biting her bottom lip. "I began to realize it in the Forest of Death. And then it became painfully obvious once he told us about what happened to his clan."

The kunoichi breathed out threw her nose. Naruto was right. She knew all along what he was. Still… _"I had hoped that mindset would change… even a little bit."_ Her blond teammate glanced at his teammate out of the corner of his eye. Mayu noticed and looked to the field as well. Sasuke seemed pissed. A nervous smile tugged at her lips. Well, he did not like tardiness, after all.

"You know I used to be picked on a lot, right?" Naruto continued. "When I was a weak kid, older kids would always call me names and beat me up, too."

"Naruto…"

"Somehow, Sasuke found out, and then tracked every single one of them down."

"Don't tell me he-"

"Yup… He provoked them into attacking, so he could _defend_ himself." Mayu's eye twitched. "And after he was done, he told them…"

_Justice for the reluctant, you ignorant fool._

Mayu sweated with a flat look. _"Sasuke… You're a twisted mofo…"_ She slapped her headband with her palm. "We have such a scary teammate!" Naruto chuckled.

"Yeah, but he's cute, too, so he gets away with it," he said. "Sasuke really cares for the both of us." Mayu smiled and nodded her head. "So yeah, Sasuke's an avenger, but there's nothing wrong with that. He does it because he cares and wants to protect us. I was a little ticked when he told me about his little stunt on those guys, but I knew what his intentions were. Honestly, he acts all tough but really Uchiha Sasuke is nothing but a softy!" The blond shinobi laughed out. The kunoichi joined in.

"You know he'd probably kill us if he knew we were talking about his sweet actions for us!"

"_Haha_! What's he gonna do when he's all the way down there?"

...

…

"Did you _really_ just call Sasuke cute?"

"Shut up—you know what I meant!"

0~0

_"That's funny… I suddenly want to punch both my teammates."_ Sasuke slowly opened his eyes. His opponent had yet to be come down. The Uchiha almost growled. Now that he thought about it, she hadn't been in the waiting area like the rest. That meant she hadn't heard the announcement. And that meant he had to wait for someone to tell her, and then wait for her to come down. A sour look appeared on Sasuke's face. _"How lucky and unlucky at the same time…"_

After another minute or so, Haruno Sakura stepped onto the wet field. For once, she did not have a pleasant smile on her face. Instead, her head was bowed and a frown was visible. Her movement was slow and stiff. Sasuke felt a smirk surface on his face. Finally, he thought. Because of this match, he wouldn't have to claim self-defense. He could go all out if he wanted to. Iruka cleared his throat, drawing Sasuke's attention away from his foe. The man appeared to be uneasy. The young Uchiha stared at the ground for a moment. He had hoped his maniacal grin hadn't surfaced like last time. That had caused many villagers to stand clear as he made his way to Naruto's… _friends_ from the past. "Now that you're here, we can begin the match, Sakura."

Sasuke turned back to the pink-haired girl. She had looked up. For a moment, the two simply stared at one another. "What took you so long? Delaying the inevitable?" Sakura only returned the smirk.

"Sorry, Sasuke-kun… If I had known I was in such high demand, I would have gotten here sooner." She stopped, standing a few feet away from Sasuke. Sakura smiled lightly. "Do try to go easy on me. I don't want our fans getting worried." The Uchiha recalled the end of his and Mayu's match at the last chuunin final. The audience had cheered for the both of them. 'Uchiha' and 'Haruno' they had shouted. They had no idea…

"Easy…? Your fans…?" Sasuke almost scoffed. His neutral looked returned. He slid his dominant foot back. His bent his knees and outstretched his arms, ready to attack. "I think it's safe to assume that you had not one. You're a bitch for no apparent reason. That was not _you_ who fought against me. Frankly, I wouldn't be surprised if you were forgotten after I'm done with you." Sasuke smirked once more, realizing that Sakura was now scowling. "Before we start, I just want you to know that what you did to my teammate is unforgivable, so going easy on you never once crossed my mind." Sakura frowned again. "Of course you can always give up—save yourself from my version of justice."

"_Uh_… Begin?"

Immediately, Sasuke ran at the kunoichi. His body sank and turned, stretching his leg out. His leg swung and swept Sakura off her feet. The Uchiha followed up with an elbow to the chest. Sakura flew back, head first. However, she pulled through the attack quickly. Her arms shot out and she bent her body backwards. The girl fell into a handstand, only to push herself up and onto her feet. Sasuke rapidly sent a flurry kunai her way. Sakura managed to evade each weapon. As she dodged, she decreased the distance between them. The Uchiha waited until she was in range. He reared his fist back and made a solid strike to Sakura's abdomen. Not giving her time to counter, Sasuke rammed his right fist into her stomach, and then his left again. This attack lifted Sakura off the ground. The Uchiha continued striking her by jumping after her. He shifted several times before finishing with a straight kick to the chin.

Sakura used the force of the hit to flip her body. She then twirled, arms spread. Sasuke's face was struck multiple times by her palms. Again she landed in a handstand. This time, though, she swiftly stomped at the shinobi's chest using both of her feet. The kunoichi crossed one arm over the other, twisting her body. Her leg swung and hit Sasuke's side. Well, it would have hit if the Uchiha hadn't performed a cartwheel, dodging to the side. However, the effects of that counter were beginning to take its toll. His body shook, trying to suppress the coughs. "So you're not that much of a coward, huh? Got a little fight in you, don't you?" Sakura did not respond. She only gave a smirk. Sasuke grit his teeth. He was beginning to become annoyed. _"My attacks aren't doing anything…" _The kunoichi in front of him wasn't even panting. _"That's right. Mayu trained that body to withstand the toughest of fists."_

"Want more, Sasuke-kun?"

She actually had the audacity to _taunt_ him. The kunoichi suddenly ran at him. Sasuke brought his arms up to block whatever was coming. One step away, though, Sakura disappeared from his sight. Dark eyes expanded in surprise. The rhythm of the rain had changed slightly. _"To the left!" _Sasuke hurriedly pulled shuriken from his holster. The weapon was flung, but it only soared through the rain. A shiver went through down his spine. Instinctively, the young Uchiha dove forward, rolling away. Lucky he had. Any later and it would have been his head cut through instead of his hair. _"She's quicker than she was before. I've been underestimating her."_

His eyes watched as the kunoichi spun the kunai around her finger. That insufferable smirk remained as she clutched the weapon. Green eyes glanced down at his hair. It was only a few strands, but they were visible. Her smirk grew into a grin. She then picked up the strands. To his astonishment and slight disgust, she tied the strands to the handle of the kunai before putting it back in her back pouch. "You really piss me off, Sasuke-kun." The Uchiha glared.

"Believe me when I say the feeling's mutual."

Sakura didn't seem to hear him. She continued as if he hadn't spoken. "I was really hoping I'd get to fight that bitch on your team. I trained especially for her. But… your attitude annoys me, so I guess I have to show you instead what I am capable of." Sasuke scoffed as he activated his advanced bloodline. "Oh, the Sharingan…? For me? Sasuke-kun, you didn't have to!" Her sarcastic tone only served to piss the shinobi off even more. "But it doesn't matter." The kunoichi ran at him again. However, she did not attack. She, instead, ran circles around him. She was moving so fast that it seemed that Sasuke was surrounded by a tube of water. The Uchiha turned his head back and forth. His eyes darted to and fro, trying to pinpoint her. Even his eyes were barely keeping up with her. Without warning, the girl appeared in front of him. Before he had time to react, Sakura had jumped up a bit. She curled her body, flipping in mid air. Her legs shot out, causing her feet to slam against his chest.

Stumbling back, Sasuke could not stop the follow up. Sakura had used his body to go higher. Her feet came back down on his head. His face smacked the mud underneath him. _"Shit…"_ The shinobi mentally growled as he picked himself up. _"It's just like that time with Lee. I can see her movements, but my body can't react quick enough to stop it."_ Sasuke wiped the muck from his face. _"Fine, I'll just stop using them for awhile."_ The Uchiha softly brought his hands together. Actually, this was good. It meant he didn't have to concentrate on another thing anymore. He was unaware that the bracelets around his ankles glowed silver. However, the bright glow from the ones on his wrists caused him to smirk. His opponent looked suspicious. _"That's right, you should be!"_

0~0

Mayu blinked several times. She then rubbed at both of her eyes. Her teammate was all shiny now. "Uh… Please tell me Sasuke's not some weird vampire! It's not even bright outside!" Naruto raised a brow, giving the kunoichi a funny look. "Well, look at him! He's sparkling!"

"I don't think it's him, Mayu." The blond turned his eyes back to Sasuke. He squinted, trying to see through the rain. "It looks like… it's those bracelets he always wears."

"The bracelets…? You mean the ones we get hit for because we call them gay-looking on him?" Naruto nodded his head. "So they have some sorta special property?" Again, her teammate nodded. But he had a sour expression now. Mayu mirrored the look. "That Sasuke—he's been holding out on us!"

0~0

"That's new…" Yasmine murmured. But then again, Hyuga Hinata did have that strange weapon. She tilted her head to the side as she watched Uchiha Sasuke swing his arms back and forth. The movement was very enchanting. The foreign girl quickly shook her head. Her eyebrows furrowed. _"What the heck?"_ Maybe it was because of the rain; plus, it was dark. Her eyes had followed his movement as if in a trance. _"Maybe he's trying to hypnotize Sakura…?"_ His movements seemed to leave a silver trail. Whatever he was about to do, she hoped it was good. Whatever it was…

It was pretty.

0~0

Sasuke breathed in slowly as his arms fell at his sides. He felt so light now without the weight of his chakra pulling him down. His chakra network swelled as the stored chakra flowed through it. He had been storing chakra for awhile, so now that he had released his concentration on the mini weights, it was finally coming back. The shinobi's red eyes focused on Sakura again. The glow from the weights gradually faded, which meant all the chakra had returned. "**Chakra Recovery**." The kunoichi gasped lightly.

He wasn't going to give much chance for her to do anything else. The Uchiha expelled chakra from his feet, giving him a burst of speed. He hadn't needed to use his chakra seeing as how his speed was already enhanced. But it wouldn't hurt, either. Sakura hastily threw shuriken only to have Sasuke dodge her attempt by sliding across the ground. As he moved to come back up, he whirled around. The momentum behind this move was enough to knock Sakura back with his knee. The kunoichi grabbed at her chest. Sasuke flipped, bringing his foot down upon Sakura's head. He propelled away from her. The shinobi dropped down beside her just before she hit the ground. His leg came up, sending the kunoichi up to the sky. Sakura cried out. Finally, he had caused pain. Sasuke smirked. He wasn't done yet.

Appearing above her, the young Uchiha prepared to unleash his attack. Green eyes snapped open just as his fist crashed into her cheek. This sent the girl hurdling down. Sasuke quickly threw shuriken down. Attached to the weapons was wire. The wire wrapped around the kunoichi's upper body. She hit the ground with a grimace as Sasuke placed the end of the wires in his mouth. The hand seals were a blur. Snake, Dragon, Rabbit, Tiger…! "**Fire Style: Dragon Flame Jutsu**!" An inferno spewed from the shinobi's mouth and headed straight for Sakura. Sasuke unclenched his teeth, letting the wire fall from his mouth. He flipped away from the destruction he had caused.

His feet clung to wall, holding him in place. Sasuke watched as the flames tried to fight its natural weakness. However, it was all in vain. Soon, the fire would diminish, leaving nothing behind but ash. The Uchiha narrowed his eyes as the last of the flames died out. The ground had been charred. There, in the middle, were the remains. Sasuke mentally sighed. His opponent had escaped. It had been a substitution. Turning on his heel, the shinobi kicked a kunai from Sakura's hand. He then followed up with a punch to her stomach. His physical attacks were beginning to wear on her if her pained expression was any indication. Sasuke grabbed her wrist and a fistful of her shirt before throwing Sakura off the wall. Pursuing the kunoichi, he wrapped his arms around her falling body. This pinned her arms and legs. Sakura could go nothing as her head pounded into the ground.

Sasuke heard something shatter upon impact. He looked to see that he was holding onto a tree branch. His eyebrow twitched in annoyance. He could just imagine that his teammates were laughing their asses off about him being 'logged' again. Unlatching from the wet branch, Sasuke moved to stand. Sakura was nowhere to be found. She must be hiding somewhere. The Uchiha walked to the center of the field. The kunoichi may be fast, but at least he would hear her coming. The rain suddenly began to let up. Sasuke closed his eyes, waiting to hear the girl's next move. He didn't have to wait long. His ears picked up her footsteps. Sharply turning his head, the young shinobi glared in the direction of the tree.

Sakura, green eyes on him, slowly walked forward. The kunoichi stopped only a few yards away. "Well…? Do you understand my vendetta?" She frowned at his question. Sakura bowed her head. Sasuke's eyebrows knitted together in confusion. He could swear her body shook. Chuckles entered his ears. Her mouth opened and closed, not forming words.

"Vendetta…? Don't make me laugh! You don't have a clue!" She suddenly tensed, forearms raised and fists clenched. Her teeth were showing, but it was not a smile she wore. "I'll show you a true vendetta!" Slowly, the curse mark on Sakura's arm spread up to her shoulder. Then she completely disappeared. Sasuke's eyes widen. How could she be so fast? The shinobi could not stop her fist from pulverizing his cheek. He slid back, only to receive another punch from behind. At a brisk speed, fists were felt all over. "This nightmare is for _real_!" A last strike sent the Uchiha flying back. His back hit the tree. Blood shot from his open mouth.

Sasuke couldn't understand. She shouldn't have been so fast. He panted heavily as he lifted his head. What he saw caused his eyes to shoot open. There, besides, the kunoichi was a clone. It was not an ordinary clone, though. Although, it looked like Sakura, its color was _off_. It was black, white, and shades of grey. The two high-fived, and then the clone vanished. Sasuke held his stomach as he stood. Was it even a shadow clone? _"Damn… My body hurts."_ The kunoichi ran through a couple of hand seals. The same clone appeared beside her again. The two ran at him. _"Why can't I move!"_ They both reared their fists back. A flurry of punches pummeled his body. A blinding pink light seemed to erupt each time he was struck.

The force behind the attack actually made the bark of the tree crack and shatter. Sasuke panted heavily, fighting to the urge to fall over. He glared at her. "So you see?" The shinobi grit his teeth. "No? Then let me continue!" Again, the kunoichi's hands together in a haze of hand seals. "Here we go!" She pointed a finger at him. To his utter shock, an enormous version of the clone dropped down behind his opponent. Sasuke stared up, mouth open.

"_**SHĀNNARŌ**_!" Gigantic glowing red eyes glared down at him. The clone lifted its huge fist, and then brought it down. There was no way this was real.

"_Genjutsu…?"_ Sasuke jumped out of the way just as the fist came down. It had missed him by a hair. The fist and clone disappeared in a flash of pink light. "So it was a genjutsu…" The shinobi put distance between the kunoichi and himself. His body shook, but really, he had not been hurt at all. It was just the effect of the genjutsu. The attacks hadn't been real. Sasuke took a deep breath, calming his body. He glared in Sakura's direction. "It'll take more than that to get me!" Taking out a single kunai, the Uchiha ran at the girl.

"Oh…? Then how about this?" Sakura jumped up, using her chakra to jump higher than necessary. Sasuke stopped, watching her. She reached into her back pouch, pulling out the kunai with his hair tied to it. The shinobi narrowed his eyes. Quicker than lightning, the weapon was flung at him. Smirking, Sasuke moved to the side. However, Sakura showed off her own smirk. Her hands ran through seals. "**Terror Vortex**!" The wind picked up and swirled around Sasuke. He kept his eyes on the air bound kunoichi, though. Too bad she vanished from sight, fading into pink.

_"Shit…!" _Turning his head, the Uchiha tried to locate the missing kunoichi. However, what he had spotted was not his opponent. It was his two teammates. They were running towards him with smiles on their faces. "What are you doing here, idiots?" They only laughed off his question and came closer.

"You're the idiot! I'm so glad you wo-" Naruto never finished his sentence. His body had suddenly split in half. Mayu stopped and screamed as the rest of his body was sliced up as well. Sasuke stood rooted to the spot, stunned beyond disbelief. The blood from his best friend splashed on his skin. His lips parted and his eyes expanded.

"Sasuke…!" Mayu tried to run forward, but kunai embedded deep into her back. The world around them seemed to go black. All he could see was his comrades. Blood dropped from her chin. Tears flowed out of her eyes. "S-Sa… suke…" She was suddenly decapitated, spraying her blood everywhere, including on Sasuke's face.

"No…" His body shivered. "It's not real. It's not real. It's not real." He chanted this to himself several times, but the corpses did not disappear. A chuckle entered his ears. Still, Sasuke did not move.

"Shame on you, letting your teammates die like that." Sakura appeared by his side. Her arms were behind her back. She almost looked sincere, and would have, if it hadn't been for the delighted grin. "You let them die, Sasuke-kun. You couldn't do a thing. It's your fault." Echoing, her voice whispered in his ear. "So weak… You couldn't protect them. When they didn't you the most, you only stood there." Sasuke shook his head and squeezed his eyes shut. It wasn't real, he told himself. "Oh, it is. Didn't I tell you? This nightmare is for real."

"No…! It's a genjutsu!"

"If it is, break out of it then." Again and again, the death of Naruto and Mayu flashed through his mind. Sakura's repeated her words each and every time. Her demented laughter only made it worse.

_Weak… So weak… You couldn't protect them... It's your fault…_

0~0

Naruto rubbed the back of his head. It was a sign that he was confused. His blue eyes stared down at the two combatants. They hadn't moved in quite some time. The blond pointed a finger at them and turned to his female teammate. "_Ehhh_… What's going on, Mayu?" The kunoichi had her eyes focused on the match below. She narrowed her eyes.

"It… seems like one of them has cast a genjutsu on the other."

"What? But Sasuke doesn't know any genjutsu!"

"Yeah… and to my knowledge, neither does Haruno. Unless those bracelets weren't the only thing he's been keeping from, it just might be from her." Mayu crossed her arms and furrowed her brow. "I'm getting a weird feeling. Sakura has never used genjutsu before, right?" The girl frowned. "If I use that logic, then she has never had the curse mark before either. I really did screw things up big time."

"Hurry up and do something, Sasuke!" Naruto complained. "This is so bor-"

His teammate's sudden scream interrupted.

"No way…" Mayu dropped her arms. "_Sasuke's_ under the genjutsu?" Another scream from the young Uchiha confirmed it. Shivering, the kunoichi hugged herself. She had never heard Sasuke scream like that before. Actually, she had never heard him scream at all. His hands were covering his ears. Her teammate had fallen to his knees and hunched over. "What is he seeing? What is he hearing?"

"Sasuke!" Naruto was practically over the railing, yelling at his teammate. "SASUKE! DON'T LET IT GET TO YOU!"

"_It's no use—he won't hear…"_ Mayu gripped the railing. _"His Sharingan can't see through genjutsu."_ She felt so powerless. _"Pull through, Sasuke…"_

0~0

Sasuke moved his head back and forth, wanting desperately for the vivid images to fade. He had quickly lost control of the situation. Honestly, he felt like hurling. Trying to shut out Sakura's voice did not help either. Finding that he couldn't hold himself up anymore, the Uchiha fell to his knees. His body convulsed for a time. This illusion seemed to last forever. Curling his body, Sasuke clenched his teeth. _"No… no… I can't let it end… not like this!"_

_Move!_

His eyes snapped open. Wait a minute… This was just like before. Albeit, last time was much more horrifying since he couldn't move at all, it was still the same fundamentally. Pain—he needed pain. Shaking, Sasuke reached for the kunai impaled in the ground, forcing himself to ignore the screams of his comrades. However, the kunai suddenly imploded! "_Ah_, _ah_, _ah_, Sasuke-kun. Suffer like a good little shinobi." The young Uchiha clenched his fists. His teammates' screams seemed to become louder. Sakura winced obnoxiously. "My, my… I didn't know people had so much blood."

Unbeknownst to either fighter, an additional tomoe appeared in Sasuke's left eye.

The screaming stopped. The blood of his favorite comrades was no longer felt on his skin. He could no longer hear Sakura's voice echoing. The genjutsu was over. Slowly, Sasuke stood up. His opponent stood only a few feet away. "You…" Sakura took a step back. "I can't even describe you."

"So it left you speechless?" she asked, smirking. Making a mad dash across the field, Sakura pulled her clenched hand back. "So then you're weakened!" She moved quicker than she did before. However, Sasuke could see every movement. Her fist clasped in his palm.

"I see you." Angry Sharingan eyes fiercely stared at the kunoichi. She trembled under the intensity of his gaze. Before she could run away, Sasuke delivered a sharp blow to her jaw, knocking her back. Sakura slid against the muddy ground. She struggled to sit up, but couldn't. In the end, she used her elbows to keep her back off the ground. The two simply stared at one another for a moment. Sasuke walked towards her. "Just try using genjutsu again," he said. Sakura lowered her head. Still, he could see the smirk.

"I don't have to. My job is done." Sasuke raised a brow. "I surrender!"

"You _what_?"

"The match goes to Uchiha Sasuke!" Iruka's shout caused the younger shinobi to glare in his direction. "She officially gave up. You have won." Sakura's chortles entered his ears once again, prompting Sasuke to face her again.

"Sorry, but you won't have the satisfaction of beating me." The young Uchiha opened his mouth to angrily rejoin. His teammates' shouting, though, interrupted. "Celebrate this win, Sasuke-kun. You deserve it." Sakura forced herself to stand. She held her cheek, and then proceeded to pass him. Sasuke narrowed his eyes.

Naruto ran to his teammate, not paying any mind to the green-eyed kunoichi. Mayu, however, locked eyes with her as she moved past her fellow kunoichi. In that split second, Sakura mouthed words to her. "You're next," she had said. The young Ishikari mentally shook her head and focused more on her dark-haired teammate. Naruto was asking question after question, and yet Sasuke had not said a word. She stepped into his line of vision along with Naruto.

"SASUKE!" Their voices were in unison. The combined efforts seemed to snap Sasuke out of his daze. "What happened? You screamed! Mayu said it was a genjutsu!" Naruto was the first to fire out.

"What did she show you?" Instead of answering, his eyes lowered to the ground. "Sasuke…!"

"I _don't_ want to talk about it." He sharply turned away from them and walked away. Outraged, Naruto raced after him. His shouting seemed to be futile. Mayu watched his departing back, eyes wide.

"No…" she breathed out, shakily. _"It's happening… It's happening no matter what, isn't it?"_ The kunoichi squeezed her eyes shut and bowed her head. _"No matter what, it's not going to change, is it?" _Frowning, Mayu followed after her teammates at a slow pace. _"Sasuke..." _Was this the beginning of his drifting?

Was this the beginning of his Will of Fire going out?

0~0

Finished January 7, 2011

Oh… my God… I want to shoot myself with a rusty bullet. I wrote this in seven days, and I'm pretty sure it shows. This is probably going to be my least favorite chapter, and that's saying something because I love everything I write. What? That's not vain! That's just _pride_! … That's the same thing, isn't it? Oh well!

**Sasuke VS Sakura**: What could be said about this horrendous thing that I've done? I don't even know what to say. Sakura has the curse mark. I should have thought about that before I pitted her against someone like Sasuke. I kinda feel that that was a mistake. But anyway, it happened. I can't change it now. Obviously, Sakura's going to be stronger than her canon counterpart at this point in time. Her abilities—and mindset—have been altered thanks what happened to her. And it's the very same thing with Sasuke. Speaking of him, almost the entire fight was in his perspective. Annoying…! I will not be writing from his point of view for _awhile_! Well, that's what I want…

Anyway, special shout out to KeiGinya! If it wasn't for this reviewer, I wouldn't have quickly written out this chapter. So thanks, KeiGinya. Your reviews are awesome.

Next time: … _Take a Stand!_

I'm looking forward to other awesome reviews!


	31. Take a Stand!

"And the winner is Hyuga Neji!"

Yasmine had to stop herself from screaming from utter joy. Neji was so amazing! Whilst others cheered the young Hyuga on, the foreign girl refrained from that. There was always time to praise him later. As time went by, he only became better. His level of skill seemed to rapidly increase since the last time she had the honor of fighting him. _"If we hadn't been friends and he was at that level, I would have died!"_ Brown eyes glanced at her former caretaker. His arms were crossed; he nodded his head several times. His eyes and thoughts were hidden from the world. Sawatari Jano also made affirmative noises.

Tilting her head, Yasmine poked his bicep. The man opened eyes and turned. Of course she asked him what he was thinking about. "I'm just impressed, that's all." Jano said this and nothing more. Yasmine blinked once, and then shrugged. She stood up. "Where are you going?" Even as he asked, the man moved to stand as well.

"My legs feel weird, so I'm going for a walk. You don't have to come with me."

"But the next match-"

"I'm not leaving the stadium." Yasmine smiled lightly, and then headed to the steps. "Be back soon!" She waved as she ascended. There was no time to lose. The foreigner sprinted around the stadium, eyes darting around. Weeks ago, she had received a response from the family she had stayed with prior to coming to Konoha. The letter stated that they would be here in time for the chuunin exam. Hopefully, they were somewhere in the audience.

Spotting them should not be too hard. The family had a distinct color scheme. Yasmine came to a stop. Just as she thought… Grinning, she made a mad dash down. "Soujiro-sama…!" At the sound of his name, the man turned around. He barely saw who had called out to him because he was immediately tackled by the foreigner. He had almost fallen out of his seat. "You did come!" Upon recognizing her, Soujiro gave a smile. He patted her head lightly as he sat up straight.

"Of course we'd-"

"Yasmine-san!" A boy latched onto her. "I've missed you so much!" Yasmine returned the hug. "Hey, hey! I got taller!" He pulled away to show her.

"Indeed you did, Yuuji-kun!"

"So you have completely learned then?" Soujiro asked. At her proud smile, he continued. "Misao-dono could not attend. The trip would have caused strain for her."

"She already had the baby?"

"Yes! I am now a big brother."

"Her name is Yasume," Soujiro stated. Yasmine was quick to blanch.

"You actually named your baby after _her_? What if she turns out just like her?"

**What the hell is that supposed to mean?**

Soujiro chuckled a bit. That had been the exact response that his wife had given him. "A name doesn't equal personality." Yasmine crossed her arms and pouted, most likely feeling a bit jealous. "You seem to be doing well. Are you happy here?" The foreigner rapidly nodded her head. "I'm glad, but Yuuji misses you quite a bit. And so does Misao-dono." She flushed and rubbed the back of her head.

"I can't really do anything about Misao-sama right now, but…" Her eyes turned to his son. "As long as you're here, I can hopefully spend time with Yuuji-kun." The boy blushed as well. He had been missing her quite a bit. Soujiro watched Yasmine lower to Yuuji's height. "I can't wait to have fun with you again." She tapped his nose with her index finger. "I hope you've gotten stronger!"

"Of course I am! You just wait!"

Giggling, Yasmine leaned forward. She gave the cute boy a peck on the cheek. To her delight, his cheeks practically glowed. It was a bit of fun seeing others get a culture shock. Apparently, someone like her—even _she_—was more affectionate in public than anyone else. Turning her eyes to the smiling father, she leaned towards him as well. Soujiro shook his head, and then gave her forehead a kiss. It took quite a while to convince him that such a display was alright. Yasmine stood at full height, and then turned to leave. "I'll find you guys once this whole thing is over, so I can give you my current address." The man and boy nodded and waved her off.

Pushing herself, she made it up the stairs. That's when she heard Iruka's voice again. He was about to announce the next two fights. She had better get back to Jano. However, before she took another step, the scarred man's voice echoed in her ear. Ishikari Mayu versus Yamanaka Ino, he had said. Her best friend had yet to show what she was capable of. She had said it was too dangerous for a civilian and a ninja to have Yasmine's brand of 'fun.' At the time, Yasume had called her a scared pansy, which had prompted a head strike from the kunoichi. Now, she was going to get the chance to actually see how Mayu was in battle.

"_This should be good, right?"_

0~0

No wonder the village seemed deserted. The majority of people were in the stadium. Cheers filled the building. It was a bit hard to think. He hadn't been to one of these in years. In fact, at the time, he had been participating. They were still doing the chuunin exam like this then? One would think they would change it after all these years. The chuunin exam was always the same. How long had it been since his chuunin exam? How long had it been since he had been in this village? Too long.

The man flicked his cigarette before going up the stairs. The sounds of the spectators were beginning to die out. He must have just missed the last match. The proctor was now quieting the audience to announce the next matchup. Hearing the names of the next two fighters, the man's eyes went wide. He almost grimaced. _"That old man—what is he trying to pull?"_

Out of nowhere, he felt his side tackled. He stumbled quite a bit before regaining his balance. "I'm sorry. I wasn't paying attention. I won't have to pay for injuries, do-" The man blinked. The girl blinked back at him. The girl's features were a bit surprising. Not many in the Leaf village looked this way. Not many in the _world_ looked like her. There were a few in the Cloud village, though. The girl stared back at him, lips parted. She seemed surprised to see him as well.

For a long time, they simply stared at one another. Finally, he dipped his head—wanting to tell her it was fine. She mirrored his actions, and then averted her gaze. She gave a quick bow, and then left. He turned, watching her departing back. _"That girl… She has been alone for a long time."_ He sighed. Really, he should stop doing that. People were not fond of being analyzed like some type of an experiment. The man's eyes flickered to the field below. The two fighters were having a stare down. His eyebrows knitted together. According to him, they have some type of history—unfriendly history.

"_Will it matter? I'm sure it will. Let's see how you handle your emotions in battle."_

0~0

Umino Iruka had announced Hyuga Neji as the winner of the fifth match of the exam. However, Team 7 did not say a word to each other. Sasuke had been silent ever since his fight with Sakura. He refused to talk to either Naruto or Mayu. Actually discussing the previous fight seemed to be out of the question. Baby blue eyes narrowed at the group of three. To be so damn chatty after each match, their silence was just downright weird. Was the match really that shocking that they couldn't say anything? Ino crossed her arms.

"_Well, the match was a bit weird…"_

For a long time, Sakura liked Sasuke, and according to the pink-haired kunoichi, she still did. How Sakura acted towards Sasuke, though, was just different—very different from how she used to act. She had caused _Uchiha Sasuke_ to scream—most likely from torture. Ino knew the screams. Gaara used to scream like that. The blond kunoichi turned her eyes away from Team 7. At this point, she didn't even want to think about her houseguest. His stupid words often appeared in her mind at the most random of times. _"Gaara…!"_ Ino clenched her teeth. The young Yamanaka sighed through her nose.

She shook her head to clear her mind. Focusing on the remaining fighters should be her priority. Of the remaining fighters, one was Shikamaru. It was doubtful that they would pair teammates up again—especially not teammates of the Ino-Shika-Chou formation. So that brought down the number of people she could potentially fight for the exam. Two people she could fight, and of those two-

"The next match will now commence!" Iruka, her former sensei, quieted the audience. "Will Ishikari Mayu and Yamanaka Ino please make their way down?"

For a moment, the blond forgot to breath. She would be fighting the girl that had ruined her best friend's life. And there would be no one to interfere this time. Ino turned, eyes closing in on Mayu. Darker blue eyes stared back at her. The Yamanaka found herself glaring. Her opponent mirrored her expression. The dark-haired kunoichi was the first to look away. She flipped over the railing, obviously as eager as Ino was. Scoffing, the blond decided to take the stairs, make her wait.

Ino moved, not bothering to wait for her teammate to wish her luck. She didn't need luck—not this time. Beating Mayu was not going to be enough, though. As she walked, her hands clenched at her sides. _"I have something special planned for you."_ The kunoichi's foot touched the ground floor. It was then she noticed someone leaning against the wall, arms crossed. Frowning, Ino strolled right past him without a word. He—Gaara—did not speak either. His eyes—his piercing eyes—could be felt on her skin. Ino willed herself to ignore his stare. She would not think of him. She would not think of last night. What mattered now was this fight.

She finally made it to the field. Mayu was standing opposite of her. Ino mentally smirked. Already, she could tell. This fight was hers. The Yamanaka stopped a few feet away from her foe. Their stares were hard, both unwillingly to be the first to become nervous. Nervous…? Ino was far from it. However, the longer she stared at Mayu, the more ticked off she became. The dark-haired girl suddenly smirked. "This is it, Ino. Me and you—the fight that you've been waiting for. I'm not going to hold back." The blond did not respond. "Don't tell me you forgot. Though, you were crying like a little girl. I wouldn't want to remember it either." Thoughts of speaking with _Sakura_ before her match with Gaara at the last chuunin exam materialized in her mind. Ino scowled. "Oh, so you do remember?"

"Don't pretend, you faker! That wasn't you, but I won't lie and say that I don't want this now." The young Yamanaka licked her lips. "Whether or not you hold back, phony, you're going down."

"Pretty big words coming from a backpedaling blond," she retorted.

"Pretty big words coming from a backstabbing bitch!" Ino hissed.

"_Why all the hostility…?"_ Iruka sweated nervously. "Sixth match…" he said out loud. Both girls sank into a stance. "Begin…!"

Neither kunoichi moved forward. In fact, they both jumped away, putting distance between them. This match was going to be hell. It was a big generalization, but honestly, hell was the only word for it. Ino was bound to be emotional. Ordinarily, having emotions in battle was a disadvantage _unless_ you could control them or unless the fighter just happened to be Uzumaki Naruto. However, Ino looked calm and ready—poised to unleash her power and every single emotion she was feeling. Despite her emotions, Ino would undoubtedly be _thinking_. Controlled yet not. Mayu's lips twitched. This was sure to be ugly. But it didn't matter. Losing wasn't an option.

Ino made the first move of course. Her dash forward caused Mayu to slide her foot back and bring her arms up defensively. The blond kunoichi smirked. She jumped up. Using her chakra, she swiftly moved down. She flipped once. The soles of her feet slammed into Mayu's chest. Well, they would have if the girl hadn't shielded herself by crossing her arms. Unperturbed, Ino twisted her body, swinging her leg. The impact of her leg hitting Mayu's face drove the kunoichi back. The young Ishikari managed to turn her body and landed on all fours. Blue eyes watched Ino land as well. The blond still wore a smirk as if she had already one with that one attack. Mayu had to hide her own smirk.

"_Got you…"_ The kunoichi slowly stood on two feet. It only took one attack to understand her opponent's fighting style. Ino's style centered on the use of her legs. Most likely, her taijutsu dealt with flexibility and speed. Mayu lightly rubbed her chest. She had felt the force even though her arms had protected her. It appeared that strength was a part of that as well. _"This will be quite the challenge."_ The Ishikari flexed her arms, moving them up and down. Good, she thought. No broken bones. This really was going to be hard. But Mayu wasn't worried… not too much, at least. The results of training with her team would definitely help deal with Ino's taijutsu. Hopefully, she wouldn't have some secret genjutsu ability like Sakura did. Mayu found herself shuddering as she remembered. Because they hadn't been expecting genjutsu, their training did not focus on preventing or escaping genjutsu. Kakashi must be beating himself up over it. Most likely, he would be drilling information in their head once this exam was over. Mayu breathed out slowly. _"Let's go, Ino…"_

The blond kunoichi seemed to sense Mayu's intentions. The two fighters raced toward each other. Ino pivoted on the ball of her feet and lifted her leg for a high kick. Anticipating this, Mayu leaned her body back, narrowing dodging the leg. Her own leg shot up, intending to hit Ino's chin. The blond was faster, however, and grabbed Mayu's ankle. Ino swiftly latched on with her other hand. With all her strength, she swung the Ishikari around several times. Finally, she released her hold. Mayu soared through the air. Before she could attempt to recover, Ino appeared above her. The blond flipped and kicked her legs out, causing her feet to collide with her opponent's abdomen. Mayu's back crashed against the muddy ground. She coughed out as Ino jumped away.

She clutched her stomach as she turned over. Panting out, Mayu stood again. She gave a glare. Ino showed her teeth, probably feeling triumphant. Fine, she thought. No more pussyfooting. Hand-to-hand combat was her specialty, after all. The kunoichi tore across the field. Finally, the smirk dropped from Ino's face. She moved to punch the oncoming Ishikari. Mayu, however, dodged to the side. Her palm thrust to the throat caught Ino off guard, so she could not stop the rapid punches to her stomach. The blond cough out, yet she could still see her foe spinning—preparing for another attack. She still hadn't recovered, though. Mayu's elbow rammed against her chest, causing Ino to stumble back. Gagging at the pain and loss of breath, she forced herself to counter the follow up.

Mayu brought her knee up, aiming to stomp kick. However, Ino caught her foot before it could hit. She almost scoffed. Instead, she feigned surprise. When the smirk resurfaced, Mayu knew she had the blond. One hop lifted her from the ground. Next, she twisted her body, raising her other leg. Mayu's heel caught Ino's jaw. The Yamanaka released a startled and pained shout as both kunoichi fell to the ground.

Ino moved away, dodging a sitting axe kick to the chest. Mayu rolled over her shoulder and got back on her feet. Seconds later, her opponent did the same. The two ran at each other again. Their fist glided past each other. Both were caught in palms. Struggling to overpower the other, the kunoichi glared hard. Ino clenched her teeth. No, her mind screamed. She refused to lose to _her_! There were not equal in strength. She would _win_. The young Yamanaka weaved her hands the opposite way. Not expecting the sudden shift, Mayu jerked forward, giving Ino exactly what she wanted.

Dark blue eyes widen, seeing the knee coming her way. Hastily, she slipped her foot back. Instead of kneeing Mayu in the eye, Ino's attack hit the metal part of the forehead. The blond screeched as she staggered back. Mayu wrapped eight fingers and two thumbs around her adversary's wrist. She twisted, earning a scream from the girl's mouth. The dark-haired kunoichi was quick to flip Ino over and onto her back. She lifted her leg and slammed her foot down. Blood spewed out of her opponent's mouth.

Mayu jumped back and watched Ino try to stand. The blond was clearly having a hard time. And why wouldn't she…? Parts of her respiratory system had come under attack, making it difficult to breathe. Even now Ino was wheezing, trying to overcome the pain. "Y-You li-little faker…" Her light blue eyes managed to glare. Holding her wrist, she finally stood without shaky movements. Mayu's gaze never left her. "You th-think yo-you've won? _This is nothing_!" For a moment, there was silence. Then, there was a grin.

"Says the one who's out of breath, out of insults, and out of time."

"You little…!" Ino decreased the distance between the two kunoichi within a second. She reared her fist back, and then launched it forward. Mayu shifted her torso, dodging the punch. With her left hand, she gripped the blonde's forearm before her right curled into a fist and collided with Ino's abdomen. However, her body was replaced with a wet log. The chunk of wood fell to the ground. Mayu turned, preparing to defend herself. Her efforts were fruitless, though, because her opponent was not behind her. "Fooled you!" A hard kicked to the back told the girl that Ino was behind her. She had merely pretended to use a substitution, but actually, it was a transformation Mayu had been lifted off the ground, giving Ino an opening. She kicked again, sending the Ishikari further up. The blond pushed chakra out of her feet and jumped. Performing a somersault, Ino managed to get higher. Her feet rapidly stomped down on Mayu's body, seven blows in total. To finish the assault, she landed. She raised her arm, hand clenched. Mayu's back connected with her fist.

"_AH_! MY SPINE!"

Saliva, mixed with blood, shot out. Groaning, the kunoichi was thrown. She rolled twice before stopping. Mayu coughed violently, almost retching. Still, she got to her feet. Ino, though, wasn't done yet. As soon as the young Ishikari stood, strikes were delivered to her body. Fists, feet, heels, elbows, palms—the blonde's attacks rapidly struck hard. The pain was almost unbearable. The last hit smashed into Mayu's jaw. The girl's body moved through the air, and then plummeted to the ground. "**16-Hit Combo**!" The young Yamanaka smirked, realizing that Mayu had gotten the full force behind the combination. "_Ha_! You see that! You're nothing! You're _nothing_ to me!"

Despite panting heavily, Mayu glared in Ino's direction. Damn… She needed time to recover. The dark-haired kunoichi swallowed her spit and blood. Fortunately—if you could take it that way—her foe's attack hadn't been aim to her face. Except for the slaps of course. Her cheeks were _aching_. The endurance training she did with her team did not focus on the face, but it still helped a lot. Sasuke and Naruto were able to endure a lot in their matches. However, they were male. Obviously, there would be some difference between them and her. Nevertheless, her body needed time before another attack. But what could she do to delay such an emotionally driven kunoichi? Her opponent's previous words echoed through her mind. Ino sure seemed a little too determined to make it known that Mayu was nothing… to _her_. _"That's it…!"_ The blond looked about ready to attack again. Mayu grit her teeth. "If I don't mean anything to you, then why are you trying so hard to _prove_ that?" This question seemed to startle Ino. Good. Now all she had to do was focus on recuperating by staying still.

Ino's eyes widen. No… Gaara flashed through her mind. His mouth moved, yet there was no sound. However, it did not take long for his words to come flying back at her. Last night—it was the most the former Sand shinobi had ever spoken. It plagued her mind, and forced her to remember. Ino froze in place as images filled her eyes.

0~0

Her back slammed against the back of the tree. Before she could do much of anything, sand incased her and the tree. Realizing that she could not do anything, Ino decided to open her mouth instead. "What the hell do you think you're doing? How dare you _humiliate_ me like that?" Gaara merely narrowed his eyes. Ino almost growled at his silence. "Why aren't you answering? If my father finds out about this, you will be punished severely!" Still, her houseguest spoke not a word. "Either you let me go or I will have you executed… prisoner of war." She hadn't meant it. Those words just came out. Like a stray kunai, she wanted to take it back. Even as the words sprayed like acid, Gaara didn't so much as flinch. Lowering her head, blue eyes stared down at her feet. She didn't want to feel this sense of… childish embarrassment.

After releasing a sigh, Gaara finally spoke, prompting Ino to lift her chin. His eyes were closed. "I don't understand," he said. The red head crossed his arms, and then showed his sea foam green eyes. "Why are you so hurt?" At her look of confusion, he tried to further explain. "You act as if you have been betrayed."

"What are you _talking_ about? Why would I feel betrayed?"

"That is what I am asking."

"I do not feel betrayed! And even if I _was_, who would be the person?"

"Mayu-chan."

Ino visibly stiffened. "What?" she hissed once she found her voice. "I don't feel betrayed, and it's _definitely_ not because of that bitch! I-I _hate_ her!" Again, Gaara didn't speak for awhile.

"If you hate her so much, Ino-" He spoke in a quiet voice. "Then why do you feel the need to prove that?" Her light blue eyes expanded in surprise and realization. "If a person hates another, then that person will not involve themselves with that other person. If a person hates, they will become indifferent to that person, not resort to harassment. _You_ and your family taught me this, Ino. I, myself, have been in this situation before, and your behavior is similar to mine. Yashamaru betrayed me, so I began to descend deeper into darkness… The way you treat her is how I thought of treating that man if he had survived. So I ask again… Why are you so hurt? Why do you feel betrayed?"

She hadn't answered him.

0~0

Even now, Ino did not have a response. Being hurt, feeling betrayal—is that what she was feeling? Her nostrils suddenly flared. No! She hated her—hated her with passion. Ishikari Mayu was not to be trusted. The faker had stolen her best friend's identity. Forgiving and forgetting something like that was impossible. Ino was doing this because she loathed Mayu. She was doing this for her best friend. She was doing this for Sakura. There was nothing to prove. Those were the facts, and nothing more.

Mayu saw the snarl before the flood of shuriken. _"Not enough time!"_ The kunoichi dodge to the right. However, she stumbled, causing a blade to slice through her skin. Wincing, the Ishikari gripped her bleeding shoulder. She then took off running. Ino followed after her. _"Damn it!"_ More shuriken were thrown. Mayu escaped the deadly projectiles by jumping; she forced charka out of her feet, gaining more air time. She looked down as she descended. Her foe was right beneath her. Without another thought, her hands performed hand seals. Snake, Ram, Monkey, Boar, Horse, Tiger—they were the seals for the Fireball Jutsu. However… _"Let me lay something fresh on ya!" _Mayu spread her arms. Her body turned, spinning faster. "**Fire Style: Dragon Twister Jutsu**!" The kunoichi inhaled as much as she could before releasing a powerful stream of fire and chakra. The flames spiraled down towards Ino.

The young Yamanaka reacted quickly. She flicked both wrists, sending kunai into her open palms. The weapons were held over her head for a moment. "**Chakra Dual Swords**!" Then the rapid movement of her arms came. If she concentrated hard enough, she would have the same speed as Hinata, and get through this attack. Ino gritted her teeth as the flames fell upon her. The heat and fire consumed the blond.

The dark-haired kunoichi flung a single kunai toward the stadium wall. Tied to that kunai was wire. The weapon impaled the wall. She used the wire to swing away from the flames. Mayu clung to the side of the stadium, blue eyes gazing into the fire. The air had become hot and stale. The smell of earth and fire was not a pleasant one. She could practically taste the dry heat. The surface of the ground had quickly dried thanks to that attack. However, Mayu was more concerned with Ino. The Yamanaka had not—oh wait, never mind. The flames seemed to dance around her before transforming into harmless fire. _"Such a skilled ninja…"_ The girl clicked her tongue, almost annoyed. She lifted her hand to her mouth. "It's time then." Her incisor pricked the skin of her thumb. The proper seals were performed. "**Ninja Art: Summoning Jutsu**!"

Ino's teeth grind. She was furious. _"My chakra… I don't know how much longer I'm going to last." _She narrowed her eyes. _"I still need to do _that_. I have to!"_ Her blue eyes darted around. Ishikari Mayu was not on the field. And she wasn't in that tree either. The only other places would be- However, before the blond could turn her eyes, something struck her body. Yelping, Ino grabbed her side. She looked at her hand. Blood was the color of her palm. It had felt as though something sharp had dug into her. The attack came again—this time, it was the top of her shoulder. She screamed out, feeling it whatever it was sink deeper into her flesh. That's when she realized. Teeth and claws belonging to a feline were the cause of her pain. _"A leopard…?"_

Her entire right side was paralyzed. The giant cat had sunk its mouth into her skin, holding her pressure point. Ino lifted her free arm and punched the summoned animal, aiming for the snout. The black leopard almost whimpered and released her. It seemed to be ready to pounce again. "Nana, move!" That was the verbal warning. The cat disappeared from her side. Hairs on the back of Ino's neck bristled. A shiver went down her spine. Quickly, the blond spun on the ball of her left foot. Luckily she had, otherwise a speeding arrow would have grazed her arm. Light blue eyes glared up at the stadium wall where the arrow had come from. Mayu was loading another. "Nana," she said. The leopard bit into her leg. Ino hissed, refusing to scream again. The arrow was released. The Yamanaka's body tensed. She then shifted her body. Her timing was perfect. The oncoming arrow would hit the cat and not her. "NANA!" To her surprise, the summoned cat disappeared in a cloud of smoke. Ino's eyes expanded. The arrow would hit!

Inches away from impaling, the arrow disappeared as well. Ino fell to the ground. Her heart pounded in her chest. The beats could be felt in her temples. That was _too_ close. If her leg had been hit, then it would have been over for her. Never mind the blood loss. Picking herself off the ground, her eyes narrowed in Mayu's direction. Her opponent was breathing hard as well. Fear was slowly disappearing from her eyes. That animal was her partner. She would have been devastated if the cat was hit by her own weapon. _"Her bow's gone now, too…" _Ino formed a snake seal. "**Earth Style: Shattering Jutsu**!" Her fist crushed the land underneath her. Like the name implied, the ground split, cracked, and shattered around her. The splitting upturned the soil, uprooting boulders and roots. The damage of the field moved toward the dark-haired kunoichi. Mayu jumped from wall just as it crumbled from the effects of the jutsu. Ino smirked. Her palms slammed against the ground. "**Earth Style: Soil Ensnarement**!" The ground shot up, heading towards the airborne kunoichi. Her eyes widen, but she could do nothing to stop the dirt and mud to form around her, hardening into a dense sphere. The ball of earth crashed down with a powerful bang.

Ino shielded her eyes because of the small debris, yet the grin on her face could not be hidden. Slowly, her arms dropped. Mayu was trapped, and she was not getting out. That ball was about the same density as Gaara's sand dome. She had spent quite a lot of time perfecting this certain jutsu, even using her houseguest as a resource. Both the inside and outside were durable. There was no way Mayu could escape. She had won the match. Ino released a slow breath.

She had won.

0~0

"That Yamanaka girl sure is a handful."

"Yeah, but that other girl is pretty good, too."

"I know what you mean. I can't help but think of her summon, though. It was the same as Haruno's at the last chuunin exam."

"Hey, you're right! Isn't that strange?"

Again, her head tilted a bit to the right. Yasmine had been doing that quite a lot since the chuunin exam actually started. The ninja were so different from the canon that she knew by heart. Having different abilities and strengths—they were seemingly stronger than their canon counterparts. The change in Yamanaka Ino was most surprising. Her taijutsu abilities were just… epic. Also, she had used elemental jutsu—_Earth_ elemental jutsu. Never would she think Earth and Ino got along. Seriously, Ino was the type of girl that did not like being dirty. But now, it looked as if she hardly cared for her disheveled and filthy appearance.

The foreigner leaned forward, keeping her eyes on the blond kunoichi. Her motivation has changed, she realized. Before, she had wanted to get stronger to impress Sasuke—a crush—which is why many fans did not like her. Then she wanted to get stronger so that she would not lose to Sakura. It was a slightly better motivation, which is why Yasmine had started to like her character development. However, now… the foreigner had no idea what her incentive was. Whatever it was, it had to be great. Ino was so _strong_. Yasmine wiggled in place, showing excitement. _"Ooh! I'm kinda jealous! She's become such a great kunoichi!"_

Her gaze shifted to the ball. Her best friend was still trapped. Yasmine was admittedly a bit worried for Mayu's wellbeing. Still, the girl had displayed a great sense of a warrior. Her tactics were superb. She had even triggered a flashback, using the nonsense of the show to gain time for her body to heal. There was no doubt that Mayu was a smart fighter. Her strength was impressive as well. In fact, if she and Yasmine had 'fun,' most likely Yasmine would end up in the hospital. The foreign girl knitted her brows. Mayu would continue to get stronger, wouldn't she? _"So maybe you're not that much of a Mary-Sue, huh?" _Gradually growing and not just being—she had grown thanks to situations and experiences. "I want to get stronger, too."

Sawatari Jano heard the girl. His eyes slowly slid over to Yasmine. Her brown eyes were filled with fortitude. His smile was a wide as a proud parent's. He would see to it that she did become stronger. The man turned his attention back to the destroyed field. Parting his lips, he sucked in a breath. The sphere around his former ward's friend seemed to be sizzling. Gray ribbons of smoke arose from the round clump of earth. _"It seems that girl doesn't like giving up."_ Jano crossed his arms. _"I wouldn't mind if she is your motivation, gaki. Let's see what else she has in her."_

0~0

"_This girl…"_ Blue eyes narrowed. _"She's more ready than I first thought."_ The man inhaled deeply through his nose, and then released. "It is time," he said. Pushing himself from the wall, the ninja turned and began walking away. There was no need to see the end of the match. His mind was already made up.

0~0

"Come on, Mayu! You can do it!" Naruto restlessly stared down at the mud encasing his teammate. It must had been hard to break out seeing as how she hadn't done so yet, but he was sure she would figure a way out. He shifted his weight several times. Not knowing what was going on inside was probably worse than being _in_ the dirt ball. Unconsciously, his fingers drummed on the railing.

"Naruto, stop that. She's fine."

"Oh, so _now_ you wanna talk to me?" The blond shinobi couldn't help but glare at his male teammate. Sasuke frowned, yet said nothing. Naruto almost growled before turning his attention back to the field. "No, no, Sasuke—you don't have to apologize. I'm totally okay with your 'I'm too cool to care' attitude." The sarcasm dripped from his voice. The Uchiha sighed lightly. There was a moment of silence before Naruto finally burst. Screw mockery and bottling stuff up—that wasn't his style—he was about to let his teammate have it. "Who do you think you are?" The blond rounded on him. "We're finally friends! We finally think of each other as family, and then you go and become all antisocial again! You can't just play with our emotions like that, Sasuke! How do you think that makes us feel? Do you even care anymore?" His teammate narrowed his eyes. "Say something, you bastard!"

"Let's just focus on the match right now, Naruto." He turned his dark eyes to the blond ninja. "I don't want to talk about it right now." Naruto did not like this answer. Still, Sasuke was right. The important thing right now was to focus on Mayu's fight, and cheer her on. "But there's no need to worry. She hasn't even used her best attack yet. Judging from the rumbling, I'm guessing she's about to."

0~0

Rubbing her aching leg, Mayu glared into the darkness. She had been kicking at her prison for almost a full minute—even using two feet—but to no avail. The kunoichi gnashed her teeth. She couldn't let it end like this—not like _this_. Trapped like some rodent, waiting for Iruka to announce her as the loser. Mayu would _not_ let it end this way. On her knees, she closed her eyes. Her fingers curled. _"Looks like I don't have a choice."_ She had to end it with this, or nearly die trying.

The smirk dropped. Her smug expression disappeared upon noticing the gray wisps of smoke coming from her trap. The wisps turned into streams of smoke. They squeezed through cracks like a high pressure was building inside. "No way!" Swallowing, Ino shifted her hands a bit. More globs of mud covered the ball and hardened. The blond could not stop the gasp when her Earth sphere began violently shaking. Seconds later, her dome seemed to explode into pieces. Mayu broke free, hand covered in blue flames. Ino gasped as her opponent ran at her.

"**Tsukeru**!"

Legs feeling like bags of sand, the young Yamanaka could not hope to dodge, only stand. Mayu reared her left arm back, and then stretched it forward. The impact to her stomach caused two pairs of blue eyes to widen. For several moments, the two kunoichi only stared. Then Mayu drew her hand back, away from Ino's bandaged torso. She lowered her eyes to the ground as did her opponent. The dark-haired kunoichi frowned, dropping her arms to her sides. The silence was broken by Ino. "What… was _that_?" Her arm shot out. Gritting, Mayu jumped away. The blonde's gaze was fierce. "You're so pathetic that it hurts to take you seriously! How _dare_ you pull your punches?"

"Just because I don't want you to _die_ means I'm pathetic?" Mayu sneered. "Where does that type of logic come from?"

"Shut up, you fake!" Ino rushed through hand seals, and then dropped down, placing her hands on the ground. "**Winding Snake Earth**!" At high speeds the dirt uplifted as if a large worm, or as intended, a snake, was slithering towards her underground. Mayu tried to jump, but by then it was too late. The ground, with new life, coiled around her legs, trapping her in place. "_Heh_, you can't move now, can you?" Ino's coy remark only caused her to receive a glare in return. The blond stood, careful to keep her hand on the ground until her foot took its place. "It's over now!" She pulled a kunai from her back pouch. Attached to the projectile was an explosive note. Mayu's lips parted as if she couldn't believe what Ino was intending to do. "Don't look so surprised. This is what being a ninja is all about—_not_ pulling your punches." The Yamanaka flung the weapon at her opponent. "I. Win."

Mayu realized that she was in deep. That kunai would hit her shoulder, and then exploded. She could hurriedly take it out and throw it, but who knew how long that would take? Ino… didn't care, so why couldn't she feel the same? Mentally, the kunoichi shook her head. She had one shot. As the kunai moved closer, Mayu sharply twisted her upper body. The sharp end cut into her skin, but otherwise sailed right pass. Seconds later, the detonation occurred. Her hair was blown, gently slapping her cheeks. Still, Mayu did not turn her eyes away from Ino, who looked livid. "So… you can't manage your emotions enough? You're still such a child—a little brat with no self-control!"

"At least I'm not some fake who steals!"

"What?"

"That's right. Someone like you doesn't deserve anything, so you steal and break apart things that were meant to last!" Ino nearly roared. "You're a disgrace! I hate you so much if makes me sick! Someone like you didn't deserve everything I did for you! How could you do this to me?" Ino's eyes suddenly widen as did Mayu's. The blond kunoichi trembled. For some unfathomable reason, the corner of her eyes stung.

"Am I… the person you should be saying this to?"

"Shut up!" Ino repeated. "There is no one else that I hate this much! You don't deserve to be on that team!"

"I hate to break it to you, but I've always been the kunoichi of Team 7, so there is nothing you can do or say that will make me agree with you!"

"Don't make me laugh, bitch." Her throat felt like it was constricting, but she continued. "I will _never_ accept that you are a part of that team. You probably don't even care about them. You're only in it for the fame, right? You had _no_ right to take Sakura's spot, but you did, and all so you can be remembered! You have no connection to them other than Sakura! You've always been there? Jokes shouldn't be told if they're not funny!"

Throughout her opponent's little speech, Mayu only became increasingly angry. Ino was obviously bitter about something, so her words should not have mattered. However, what she was saying—the things she had implied—it caused her skin to crawl. Her foe may have been angry, but that was no excuse to doubt the bond between her team. "IT'S NOT A JOKE!" Her sudden shout seemed to startle Ino quite a bit. In fact, the entire range of spectators was abnormally quiet. "I feel as messed up as they do! I've felt the feelings that they felt and been through the same things they've been through! We know how hard it is to feel so _alone_! Because of that, our bond was forged and has become stronger—so strong that we consider each other family. I… I've been given this second chance and I won't allow myself to give it up or doubt it because of _you_!" For a time, Ino did not respond. Then she smirked.

"Those are pretty words, coming from a liar. All you speak are lies, but I know the truth."

"The truth…?"

"That's right, and I'm going to make you tell everyone." Her hands came together in her signature seal. Mayu gapped. "Don't think of trying that move again. I will hit you with this." The dark-haired kunoichi tried to move, but it fruitless. Ino was still in control. The Yamanaka chuckled at her efforts. "Once I'm inside your body, I'll make you do things, I'll make you say things—then will you know what Sakura went through because of you." Light blue eyes stared at her opponent through the seal. "And then I'll make you say that you lost to _me_!"

"_She's crazy…!"_ Mayu's body tensed. _"But she's serious, too. I only have a little chakra left, and I imagine that she does as well." _Her hands rapidly switch from seal to seal, finally stopping on the ram. Ino looked confused. _"Like I'm going to let you do whatever you want!"_ Mayu thought. The blond opened her mouth.

"**Ninja Art**-"

"**Ishikari Style**-"

"**Mind Transfer Jutsu**!"

0~0

Furrowing his eyebrows, Sasuke watched as both fighting kunoichi suddenly went still. The dirt fell away from his teammate's legs. She, however, did not move. He had recognized the seals. Both of them had used their clan's jutsu at the same time. The collision between their spirits was like watching sumo wrestlers going head to head before going around each other, and then going into the girls' bodies. And he had been the only one to see it—well, maybe Kakashi had seen it, too, but who knows? The young Uchiha crossed his arms and deactivated his advanced bloodline.

It would probably take a few seconds.

0~0

Ino rubbed her head and groaned. She had forgotten that her opponent knew a form of the Mind Transfer. Slowly, the blond opened her eyes. This was extremely different from Gaara's. The young Yamanaka looked around, eyes darting. Where it had been dark in Gaara's mind, it was bright in this one. It had been cool, almost as if there was a constant breeze. However, in this empty space, the air was hot, but not unpleasantly so. Like before, her body did not ache from her injuries on the outside world. She didn't even feel tired. "Why are you here?" A calm voice echoed, causing Ino to tense. The blond sharply turned.

She was greeted by a goddess. Ino furiously rubbed her eyes. Blinking rapidly, she looked again. However, the image remained the same. Perhaps, this woman in front of her wasn't a goddess, but she was beautiful. Her long pale blond hair—almost platinum—was done in a very elaborate manner. Hoops, swoops, and curls—there was no definite style. That did not mean it was chaotic, though. It worked for her. Pretty gems of blue, purple, and silver decorated her hair. A pair of black blades completed her hairstyle. Her skin was the color of ivory, or something close to it. Her eyelashes were long and curled, barely showing her pastel green eyes. Lips, in a tight frown, were glossed with pink. The woman wore a traditional white kimono, decorated with blue, green, and gold flowers. Only the hem was black, and so was the sash, which looked more like a corset. Golden twigs were the design of the black sash. The kimono was loose, revealing her bare shoulders and cleavage. It didn't appear as though she wore footwear.

The longer Ino stared, the more jealous she became.

"Why are you here?" She repeated her question as if she hadn't already asked it. "You are not meant to be in this girl's mind." Ino shook her head.

"_She's_ the one that tried to use the jutsu, too! I was only supposed to take control of her body."

The woman shook her head. "Your clans' jutsu collided. But even if that did not happen, you could not take over her body." Confused, Ino did not say anything. "I suppose you do not know who I am. _Haah_… Such a lousy descendant I must have." The woman closed her eyes for a moment. "My name is Inoue. I am the first—your ancestor." The young kunoichi gapped. "I am here, in this girl's mind, to act as a shield against my descendants' powers. Likewise, in your mind dwells an ancestor of Ishikari Mayu."

"What? But why? How is that even possible?"

"The Ishikari and Yamanaka clans have always had a friendly rivalry. As to not become like the Hyuga and Uchiha clans, a little part of my mind and Ishikari Mitsuo's mind has been transferred down the generations. As I said, we act as shields to Mind Transfer Jutsu. Using that jutsu on our rival clan would not succeed. This is to prevent a clash from happening, and the rivalry turning bitter." Inoue narrowed her eyes. "Which is why I am confused to see you, my descendant, here. Why are you fighting this girl?"

"It's the chuunin exam. She's my opponent." Ino's voice was a bit uneasy. The woman's lip twitched. "My-My dad never told me about you… or about the rivalry of the two clans."

"… The jutsu is not meant to be used in a one-on-one battle. Why did you use it?"

"…" Ino gulped. Honestly, if felt like she was being scolded. "I-"

"For shame, Yamanaka Ino. I know the answer from reading your mind. Our rivalry with the Ishikari clan is not supposed to be this way."

"But she-"

"You know nothing," Inoue interrupted again. "This girl—you know nothing about her. Who are you to judge her?" The woman stepped closer. "For thirteen years, I have been here, watching her memories. From what I've seen, you should pity, not ridicule."

"Wh-What do you mean?"

"Allow me to show you."

Inoue slowly lifted her arm, pulling the sleeve so that her hand was shown. A perfect cube suddenly fell into her palm. Like a die, she tossed the cube. It rolled quite a bit before stopping. The cube expanded and grew larger. An image appeared on the side facing the two blondes. "That's…" It was a picture of a younger version of Mayu. Her eyes were downcast as though she didn't want anyone to see her tears.

_Why is it just me? Can't I have someone to play with?_

_I'm sorry, Mayu, but not until you're old enough._

_Old enough…? What does that mean?_

The voice suddenly stopped. Ino shifted her gaze to her supposed ancestor, wanting an explanation for the exchange of dialogue. "Because the Ishikari clan was isolated from the rest of the village, their numbers were small. Once a child was born, another could not be until that child turned fifteen. Although she had her family, Mayu did not have anyone around her age to be with." The cube fell forward; another image appeared. This time, Mayu was smiling.

_I accept this friendship._

_All right! I am so glad! But that means you can't wear a mask around me, you do know this, right?_

_I'm aware._

_I'll be the best friend ever!_

_As will I._

_Oh, and you have to stop talking like that! It's creepy…_

"After seven years, she made a friend close to her age," Inoue spoke. "However…" The cube moved again. A look of pure anguish from a younger Mayu caused Ino to avert her gaze. Still, she could not ignore the voices.

_He is not your friend, Mayu… He and his clan have tricked us all and now your father is dead._

_But… Ita-san wouldn't…! He wouldn't…_

_Remember what I say, Mayu, daughter… This boy is evil… If I don't make it… you will. When you come back, avoid him at all cost._

_What… but momma, I-_

_Don't you dare._

Mayu's screamed echoed. Ino grimaced at the volume. Her ancestor, though, was as pokerfaced as Gaara. "Her one and only friend betrayed her—killing her father and mother before her very eyes. She was sent from this world because of a forbidden jutsu. This jutsu also caused her to lose memories, so when the jutsu began to fade, Mayu returned here in the body of Haruno Sakura." Once again the cube moved. This time, though, a nervous looking, long haired Sakura stared back.

_Saku—Mayu, was everything you told us a lie? And how old are you?_

_Of course not! The only thing I did lie about was my name. And I'm twelve, of course._

_So, you really do want revenge?_

_Yeah… why?_

_No reason. Come on… let's go find Naruto._

That had been Sasuke's voice, along with Sakura's. So he had known about Mayu? Ino clenched her teeth as her ancestor began talking about. Apparently, Mayu had come to truly care for Sasuke. At a later point, Naruto also became someone precious to her. They had begun to see each other as true teammates—a makeshift family unit that they had or never had. The blonde's fists were stiff at her sides. Finally fed up, she blurted out. "So _what_? What does this have to do with me?"

"So you're not going to admit you're wrong?" Inoue mused. She appeared to be thoughtful. "You must get that from my husband. Shame." The giant cube disappeared. The woman turned to Ino. Her hand reached out. "Experience for yourself then." Her finger lightly touched the Leaf symbol on the kunoichi's forehead protector. Light blue eyes widen as memories, which did not belong to her, flashed through her mind. "Now… leave." The woman reared her arm back. Her palm smacked against her forehead, sending her flying back.

She had seen and felt it all.

0~0

What seemed to last hours to Ino actually lasted a mere second to anyone watching. The blond kunoichi fell to her knees, panting heavily. Almost wheezing, she noticed her opponent was in the same predicament. Mayu glared at her, but Ino could only look down at the ground. She didn't know what it was like. She had no _clue_. The young Yamanaka felt her eyes sting again. Her vision of the dirt blurred. Her actions toward Mayu were so- God, she felt like such a _bitch_. The only connection she had with Naruto and Sasuke was Sakura…? How could she so callously say something like that? Ignorance, she thought. "You… saw… didn't… you?" The Ishikari's voice caused Ino to look up again. Mayu was struggling to stand. Her body trembled at the strain. "You… saw… your… ancestor, too… right?"

Ino slowly nodded her head. "Your memories… I saw… them all…" Liquid dripped from her chin. Ashamed, the kunoichi squeezed her eyes shut. "I… I-"

"Shut up!" Ino's head snapped up in surprise. "You saw my past, but so what? It means nothing to you!"

"But-"

"But _what_? All of a sudden you feel guilty?" Mayu forced a laugh. "Don't you fucking dare… Don't you dare try to feel guilty _now_!" She moved forward, nearly dragging her feet. "Your past, my past—it doesn't matter. This is a fight, so don't you dare pity me!"

"P-P-Pity…?" Ino sputtered. She rubbed her eyes and cheeks. "I do not pity you!"

"Then prove it." Mayu stopped a yard away. Her hands reached up. Her fingers slipped through her hair and brushed against her headband. The knot was untied. With a clang, her forehead protector fell to the ground. Ino's eyes widened. "Prove it," she repeated. The blond frowned and copied her opponent's actions.

"I understand." Her headband slipped from her forehead. Ino then slid her right leg back. Mayu did the same with her left. Both kunoichi raised clenched fists.

Standing so close, Ino rammed her knuckles into Mayu's jaw. The Ishikari didn't attempt to block or dodge it. There was barely any chakra left in her system. Ino must have been in the same boat. Forcing her body to get pass the stinging pain, Mayu struck in retaliation. The Yamanaka jerked away from the strength of the punch to her own jaw. However, she could go on. She aimed a punched to Mayu's stomach. The girl gagged, but then followed up with a fierce upper-cut. Ino came back, striking Mayu's cheek. Back and forth they went, using only their fists to attack. Punch after punch landed. Neither girl looked as if they would fall.

Still, it would be all over soon.

0~0

Naruto could only stare with his mouth wide open. Sasuke wore a similar expression. His lips parted, forming an 'o.' Neither shinobi had ever seen something so… raw. It was like nothing else mattered to them. The only thing that was important was… who could last longer. "This is unreal… So unreal…" Naruto's fingers hurt from holding onto the railing so tight. "I'm getting shivers just watching." Sasuke swallowed and nodded his head.

"I know what you mean," he said. His dark eyes watered a bit. He hadn't wanted to close his eyes. He didn't want to miss not one moment. "This isn't a fight between kunoichi. This isn't even a fight between ninja anymore."

"Yeah, they… don't care about advancing to chuunin." This was an impressive fight. He almost wished he was involved—almost wished his fight was like this. "They seem equal. It will end in a draw."

"No." Sasuke shook his head. "Both of them are stubborn in nature—B types. Mayu and Ino won't allow it to be finished without knowing. One person will fall or this match won't end at all."

"If that's the case, they'll end up killing each other!" Again, the young Uchiha shook his head.

"They're both too weak. I'm certain one of them will collapse shortly."

0~0

Cold sweat slid down her cheek. She could literally watch this for hours. Everyone around her—the entire audience—was stunned into silence. This was the type of fight that brought tears to her eyes. Yasmine had to force herself to stay in her seat. She was reveling in this. This fight or rather, this pure, untainted form of fighting—was what her sweetest dreams were made of. Her index finger and thumb pressed together, almost painfully so. A tear slipped out of her eye.

"Press on… Mayu."

0~0

Two quick punches made Mayu bent over. She gritted her teeth, feeling herself fall forward. Shifting her foot, she caught herself. A powerful hit caught Ino's eye, and then her nose. Blood surrounded the two fighters as they continued to pummel each other. The blonde's elbow rammed into Mayu's chin. She stumbled back. _"There…!"_ Ino could not go on. She could no longer use her arms. She would have to end it here. The Yamanaka reared her head back.

_"I'm at my limit."_ Mayu held back, keeping the cry inside. Her body was about to shut down. It felt like lead. She knew that Ino was about to end it with one last strike. She had to give it her all this last time. Grunting, the Ishikari pushed herself forward. The two released loud battle cries.

At the same time, they both gave their strongest head butt.

The sound of their skulls cracking together echoed throughout the stadium. Blue eyes looked intently into blue eyes. For several moments, the two kunoichi merely stared, baring their teeth at each other. Drops of blood and sweat came from in between their foreheads and splashed on the ground beneath them. Ino's face twitched—a sign. Mayu took it. She pulled herself back, and then launched her head forward again. Ino could not take the second hit. She crumbled under the impact, falling on her back. Mayu hunched over, gripping her knees. _"Please stay down…!"_ Ino, groaning, lifted her back. _"Damn it!"_ And then, unceremoniously, her light blue eyes rolled into the back of her head. The Yamanaka fell back, not being able to hold herself up any longer. Mayu almost breathed a sigh of relief. "I was never going down," she told the unconscious blond.

"The winner of this match is… Ishikari Mayu!"

The cheering began as a slow hum, almost as if the crowd were hesitant or unsure of how to react. Then it gradually transformed, becoming louder and convinced. It was the celebration of a great fighter winning her match. Her willpower and pride was the cause of her victory and that inspired quite a few.

The kunoichi's teammates jumped from their post and ran towards her. Naruto almost jumped on Mayu, but he held himself back. There was no use in further injuring the girl. "That was so awesome!" The young Ishikari winced a bit, but forced her mouth to grin. She wasn't faking it, though. She was seriously satisfied. But, her body ached so much that it hurt to make facial expressions.

Naruto placed Mayu's arm over his shoulder. "That was a bloody battle—you little hell raiser, always looking to put on a show." Sasuke crossed his arms. Both his teammates chuckled. "Did you really need to go that far?" She nodded without a second thought. Her eyes shifted to her fallen opponent. Her teammates followed her line of vision. Ino was being carried away on a stretcher. Bloody, sweaty, and dirty. Honestly, it appeared as if neither kunoichi had won based on physical appearance. "Ino—she was surprising."

"Yeah… she was." The grin dropped from Mayu's face. Her teammates noticed that her eyes did not stray away from Ino until she was out of sight. "If I had to… do it again, I wouldn't give her up as an opponent." The three members of Team 7 stood there for a moment more.

"Well, let's go get you helped, too!" Naruto began walking, moving so that it would cause the least amount of strain on his female teammate.

Sasuke watched his departing teammates' backs. Both of them had grown so much. The chances of them- The young Uchiha shook his head. He didn't _have_ to think about that. What he did have to do was get over this fear. He didn't want it. It wasn't welcomed. However, it was what he needed. Getting over it and overcoming it were two different things. And getting over it was the priority. _"You two…"_ Sasuke closed his eyes. There was a smile on his face as he picked up Mayu's discarded headband. _"Are everything to me, so… in order to get stronger, I will separate from this team."_

Unaware of his thoughts, Mayu and Naruto turned, shouting at him to get a move on.

0~0

Releasing a grumble, the blond kunoichi tried to sit up. However, she was pushed down. Medic ninja told her to remain calm and still. _"My body…"_ It hurt to even tense. She had a throbbing headache. The best thing to do is to completely relax. _"Easier said than done," _she thought. She would have scoffed if he didn't cause so much pain. Losing felt awful, but not as awful as realizing that everything that you thought you knew was wrong. _"Sakura…"_ The girl's reserved smile appeared in her mind. _"Why do you do this?"_

"Rest easy for now, Yamanaka-san. We have cleaned your wounds and stopped the bleeding."

Ino did not open her eyes, but she did hear the footsteps fading. At least she no longer ached. Her body, though, did not want to stray from its relaxed position. The kunoichi breathed in deeply through her nose. She held it for a moment longer than necessary. Slowly, her eyes opened. Her tired blue orbs stared aimlessly at the ceiling. Again, an image of Haruno Sakura appeared. Ino's eyelids lowered a bit before completely shutting again. Her best friend… had changed. _"Best friends… Is that what we were?"_

She could recall a time when things were different. Much simpler… before everything changed. In the past, Ino was alone. Popular, yet so alone. She had no siblings. Her father was usually gone. Her mother tended more to the shop than she did her daughter. So Ino had put on a front. It was to show that she could handle herself so that her parents would not feel the need to worry. Having them worry would make them feel guilty. Ino strived to be independent at a young age. Because of this, her classmates liked her—both girls and boys. She was the embodiment of a perfect child. Obtaining friendships was the last thing on her mind at the time. The only thing that mattered was her image—the strong, confident image she had formed.

Then she met Sakura… Her life forever changed. Before she spoke to the girl, Ino had noticed her. Because of her forehead, she had been bullied by other kids. Something that she was not in control of had become a source of entertainment for others. For the life of her, Ino could not recall her reason for approaching Sakura. Was it pity? Was it sympathy? Or was it something else? Whatever the basis of her sudden interest in the little pink-haired girl, it had caused her to initiate contact.

She had been so innocent, so cute, and so young. One conversation—it had taken only one conversation. Sakura had a face that made Ino _want_ to take care of her. For the first time in her life, a glimmer of concern for someone other than her parents had appeared. She had even given a red ribbon to Sakura for her hair. It was not newly bought either. The ribbon was something Ino had no longer used, but still treasured. Giving Sakura the simple cloth had sparked their friendship.

Wanting to help her grow, Ino stuck by Sakura. The next time those bullies came around, she had protected her. After that incident, the girl began to slowly gain confidence. Pretty soon, Sakura no longer needed anyone to stand up to bullies. She had become her own person. Ino had been so proud. Like her name, Sakura had begun to blossom from her bud. Ino had told her that the chances of her wilting away had completely been done away with. At that time, their friendship had become stronger. Ino went as far as viewing Sakura as more than a best friend—a sister. She loved her. And then…

_Is it true what I heard… that you like Sasuke-kun, too?_

That was the start of their friendship ending.

_So… I guess that means we're rivals from now on._

Before she could respond, Sakura had walked away. She had not given Ino time to process what she had said. Yes, she did like Uchiha Sasuke. But she would have never let him be the reason for ending the precious connection. _Never_! For her friend, she would have given him up, letting her pursue him, backing her up and supporting her crush on the cool Uchiha. That is what best friends do, right? A boy should not have come in between their friendship. How could she just end it like that without even thoughts to how Ino must have felt? She hadn't shown any emotion at the time. However, as soon as she was in the comforts of her room, Ino cried. Cried harder than she had in her whole life. She had been so _hurt_. Sakura, her one true friend, had betrayed her.

Ino never told anyone about it. With their friendship severed, she had to put up another front—an angry one. Although, Sakura had hurt her, Ino could not stop caring. And so she competed with her. To her, it wasn't about gaining Sasuke's affections. She didn't even want them at that point. In fact, she began to hate the young Uchiha because in her childlike mind, he was the sole reason a great friendship stopped evolving. The rivalry was _for_ Sakura. If she had a goal, Sakura would strive towards it. That was just the way she was at the time. Ino had indirectly helped her former friend grow more. She had foolishly hoped that perhaps one day Sakura would see that Uchiha Sasuke wasn't everything. She had hoped that they could become friends again. In a way, that is what happened.

Hm_… I can't believe they let someone like you become a ninja._

_Well, we are both ninja now, so I suggest that we focus more on that than Sasuke. To tell you the truth… I don't really like Sasuke, so you can have him._

_You're actually giving up on Sasuke?_

_Yeah, I'll even put in a good word for you when I see him! Besides, I want us to be friends again!_

She had been so happy. Sakura had finally realized. Although, Ino had been skeptical at first, Sakura had instantly snuffed out her doubt. _I'm about to talk to him for you_, she had said. _That's what best friends are for, right?_ Ino had wanted to stop her. She had wanted to embrace her. She had wanted… God, she had just wanted to let her know all the feelings that had been bottled up inside to that point. Suddenly, Sakura had had a different mindset. On the day that teams were assigned, Ino couldn't care less about who her teammates were going to be. She and Sakura had rekindled their friendship. Nothing else had mattered! An image of the two girls sharing a secret grin flashed through her mind. A bitter smile appeared on Ino's face.

Then again… It was not Haruno Sakura.

Ishikari Mayu, a girl who had accidently ended up in Sakura's body, had befriended her. Not knowing this, Ino continued on, liking the change she saw in her friend. Then without warning, the real Haruno Sakura returned to her rightful body. Again, a sense of betrayal had overwhelmed her. Once more, she was hurt. Another had pretended to be her friend, only to cause heartache. Like before, she had turned her bitter and sadness into resentment and rage. Sakura had added fuel to the fire by playing the victim. And Ino had gone along with it.

_I can't believe you! Lying to us, _pretending_ to be our friend—you've got some nerve! How dare you steal Sakura's life?_

How utterly _stupid_ she had been. Ino had not given Mayu a chance to explain. Because of that, she had completely turned on her, not stopping to think how the Ishikari behaved towards her while she was Sakura. She had done the same thing Sakura had done to her when they were children. The lump in her throat made it hard to swallow. Her throat began to constrict again. Ino reached up, hiding her face with her palms. Mayu had not deserved the harassment she had received based on lies.

"Ino…"

The Yamanaka removed her hands from her face. She opened her eyes, and then turned her head. He had come in as silent as a spider. Same as always, his face remained impassive. "Ga-Gaara…!" Her voice cracked. In his hand was her bloody headband. The red head did not give a response. He only continued to look at her. Ino sat up, legs dangling over the edge. Both eyes twitched. She could no longer hold back the waterfalls. The former Sand shinobi closed his eyes and stepped forward. Ino was quick to latch onto him. She wrapped her arms around his neck, burying her tear streaked face in between his neck and shoulder. Gaara opened his eyes, staring down at the blond. He did not speak. He did not move. He only stood there.

And he let her cry.

0~0

Finished January 31, 2011

My ass hurts.

**Ino VS Mayu**: This is probably my favorite fight so far. Honestly, I was thinking of this fight way before I decided to write another chuunin exam. These two _needed_ to fight it out, and fight it out they did! This was probably the longest fight that I've written. And in the end, I think Mayu deserved to win. If you disagree, so I'm not changing it. It was always supposed to end like that… Well, not exactly like _that_, but Mayu was supposed to win either way.

**Inoue and Mitsuo**: While Mitsuo is not my character, Inoue is. I thought the concept of it was pretty cool, so I decided to throw that in there. So in this version, the Yamanaka clan knew of the Ishikari clan. Since the Ishikari clan no longer existed, Inoichi didn't feel the need to tell his daughter about their ancestor. Before you ask, Mayu did not know about the deeper connection to the Yamanaka clan either. I did not mention Mayu's experience in Ino's body because it was not necessary. Though, I did imagine her meeting her ancestor… Anyway, perhaps they will appear at a later time? _Hm_, who knows?

**Chuunin**: _Hahahaha_! Yeah, like I'm going to tell you which ninja advances in rank. You'll have to wait until next chapter.

And no, I will not make a 300 reference… even though I _really_ want to. There are fan works in my profile, so go check 'em out!

Next time: _The Sacrifice_

I look forward to seeing your reviews.


	32. The Sacrifice

"_Ow_, Sasuke! What are you doing back there?"

"Shut up. You're the idiot that keeps moving! Hold still!"

"But it hurts! How lo-long—_OW_!"

"I haven't even gotten in yet, so quit it!"

"You could still be a little _gentle_, bastard!"

"That's not what you were saying when I was in your position."

"Yeah, but that was funny—_OW_! You did that on purpose!"

Mayu slid the door open. On her face was an embarrassed flush. She carried ointment, bandages, and a bucket full of water. In that bucket was also a rag. Walking into the room, she closed the door behind her. She gave an apologetic smile when her teammates looked in her direction. "Sorry again, Naruto, Sasuke. I could have sworn you were clones." The blond ninja waved off her apology, and then winced because of the friction. Sasuke rolled his eyes and called him a dumbass. The kunoichi moved forward, and then knelt down behind her dark-haired teammate. She placed the items beside her.

Both shinobi had their shirts off. Training had gotten a bit dangerous. Mayu had made a mistake. She had used shuriken against the 'clones.' Turns out, they had been the real deal. The projectiles had sliced into their backs. Luckily, the wounds weren't that deep. So at the moment, Sasuke was cleaning the injury on Naruto's back. She was about to do the same for Sasuke. Mayu reached for the bucket, pulling out the rag. She wrung the water out. The young Uchiha grimaced when the wet touched his skin. "We probably shouldn't have started training so soon after the exam," Mayu muttered. "Since we're not all at the top of our game." She squeezed ointment on her index and middle finger, and then slid them up and down Sasuke's back.

"Speaking of that, when do you think they're going to announce who made it?" Naruto asked. "Kakashi-sensei told us to meet him today." The blond suddenly grinned. "You think he's gonna tell us?"

"Who knows…?" Sasuke held his hand out. Seconds later, the ointment was dropped into his palm. "He's been so quiet lately that I sometimes forget he's supervising our training." He smacked the ointment down on Naruto's back.

"HEY! GENTLE, DAMN YOU!"

Mayu chuckled a bit, and then she halted her movements. Her eyes stared up at the ceiling in thought. "Wait a minute… When exactly are we supposed to meet with him?" Silence was her answer. After a beat or two, the team suddenly remembered and blanched. "We are supposed to meet for lunch, and then more training." Her voice trembled. "Isn't it already dinner time?" Again, she didn't receive an answer. Then Naruto opened his mouth, sweating bullets.

"WE FORGOT!" His two teammates grimaced, holding themselves back from sharing the blond ninja's expression. The door suddenly snapped opened, revealing their sensei.

"So… you forgot, _huh_?" Thunder seemed to crackle behind him. Naruto and Mayu grabbed onto Sasuke, who had unfortunately been in the middle. He almost cried out in pain, but held it in. "Don't you three know how much that hurts?" Two out of the three actually shivered. However, they all knew what that strained voice meant. Their sensei was pissed again. And the last time he was pissed, the team suffered. "Looks like four hours of genjutsu training tomorrow~!" Kakashi practically sang.

"But it was an accident!" Mayu blurted out. She trembled under sensei's tense gaze. She had been right about Kakashi cracking down on training—genjutsu oriented. Both she and Naruto had a rough time with the training because unlike their teammate, who could now see through genjutsu, could not figure out how to break through it. Their merciless sensei had not even explained how to do it yet. The kunoichi shuddered. She had been stuck in a void—a world filled with bees and their stingers.

"Yeah, isn't four hours of genjutsu too much?" Naruto asked, terrified. He had been in a genjutsu that involved vicious cats eating his ramen while being tied down and forced to watch as claws scratched him up. Sensei was too cruel. And to go through _four_ hours of that…? God no…! Sasuke rolled his eyes. He could literally hear the chattering of his teammates' teeth. Just what exactly had Kakashi put them though? "At least tell us how to break through so we can _try_!"

For a moment longer, the man held his fierce stare. He stepped into the room. Then his eye smiled down at them. They froze at the sudden shift. "Well, of _course_ I'm going to tell you how. Mayu, I'm surprised you have not figured it out by yourself."

"I'm not _that_ smart!"

"Anyway, the reason I wanted to meet with you three is for a very special reason," Kakashi continued. Finally, Naruto and Mayu pulled away from Sasuke and stood at attention. This was a serious situation—despite the two shirtless genin—which could only be one thing. The results of the special chuunin exam. All of them audibly swallowed. "_Hm_… You seem to know what this is about." Stiffly, his subordinates nodded their hands. They were waiting in anticipation. Well, they should have thought about that before they forgot to meet him. "But first, I want to go over who of your comrades achieved a higher rank." The expected reaction of exaggerated wails of protests came immediately. Kakashi chuckled again. "As comrades, it should be one of your top priorities to know what rank the people you may be working with are."

"Isn't the chuunin vest kinda a dead giveaway," Mayu muttered.

Ignoring her, Kakashi went on. "There are two squads, which participated in the chuunin exam, who are older than the rookies—tell me who they are." Naruto looked confused. "You should also know your comrades almost like the back of your own hand." The three exchanged flat looks before turning back to their sensei. "Now, tell me who the members of the two squads are, and something about it them as well." With an exasperated sigh, Mayu began.

"The two squads are Team Gai and Team Kunoichi," she said. "Team Gai consists of three males and one girl while Team Kunoichi, like the name implies, consists of four females. Team Gai is a team with taijutsu experts. Team Kunoichi seems to specialize in… genjutsu." Mayu narrowed her eyes. Sasuke and Naruto averted their gazes to the floor. Kakashi was quick to pick up on the behavior. "Those are the two, right?" The man nodded his head. The Uchiha took over with the explanation.

"On Team Gai there is Hyuga Neji—a Byakugan user who has a weird fetish with fate and destiny." Snickers came from both Sasuke's teammates, causing the young Uchiha to smirk. "Besides that, he is known as a genius fighter. Between him and his teammate, I think he is the strongest. Speaking of Tenten, she is a great fighter as well, being long and short-ranged. However, she specializes in weapons, being able to wield any weapon she summons. She's pretty smart, too."

"Sounds like someone's got a _crush_!" Naruto grinned. Sasuke's face flushed before he cupped his teammate upside the head. Mayu just shook her head and rolled her eyes.

"_Anyway_, between Neji and her, Tenten has a high probability of advancing in rank." The Uchiha ignored the kissy faces that were being directed his way by Naruto. "Their sensei is Maito Gai, who goes by the name Super Bushy Brows sensei, is a taijutsu specialist. Following in his footsteps is Rock Lee. Lee is currently in rehabilitation, having undergone surgery to repair his leg and arm, which is why he was not in the exam." Kakashi again nodded his head, and then turned his attention to Naruto.

"On Team Kunoichi, who I _just_ now realized that they had a name, are Tsuchi Kin, Tayuya, and Haruno Sakura." He grinned excitedly while his teammates shook their heads a bit. "Tayuya and Kin are from the Sound village. I think Kiba said something about Kin living with his family. They're all really fast." He crossed his arms in a thinking position. "They're… long-ranged fighters, right? Since they all used genjutsu."

"Very good, Naruto!" Kakashi praised. "Your observations are good—all of them." The team smiled, but then frowned all in unison. "Right, right—you're looking for me to cut the chit-chat?" Their stares turned angry. "Right, well, of those five, two have advanced in rank. Those two are Hyuga Neji and Tenten."

"Wait… just them?" Mayu asked. "But… I thought Tayuya and Kin did a pretty good job. Objectively speaking, Haruno was better than I expected."

"Why don't you try to understand yourself?" Sasuke opened his mouth. However, Kakashi's gaze was on Naruto. And he even called him out on it. "Naruto, please tell us why you think none of the genin of Team Kunoichi made the cut." The blond looked confused as to why he was put on the spot, but shrugged his shoulders.

"_Um_… Since Kin and Tayuya are… I mean, _were_ ninja of a different village—a village that attacked us—then I guess they wouldn't be trusted. Having them become chuunin would eventually mean them leaving the village without watching them. It would take more time for them to move forward." Kakashi blinked, pleasantly surprised. Sasuke and Mayu watched Naruto with small proud smiles. "For Sakura, I think it was her behavior. She seemed way too weird, and then she just gave up, too. That sorta… _uh_ shift in her… attitude probably made a lot of people feel uncomfortable. She seems too… _um_… too…"

"Crazy…?" Mayu supplied.

"Objectively speaking, of course." Naruto used his teammate's previous words.

"I've got to say, Naruto, I'm shocked and pleased."

"Well, I just remembered what I heard," the blond grinned while rubbing the back of his head.

"Remembered…? Someone told you?"

"No, we didn't tell him that," Sasuke answered. "We just told him about politics."

"And how chain of command works," Mayu put in. "And other stuff, too. We're extremely proud that our idiot could apply what we told him." Naruto's grin turned sour.

"You did…?" Kakashi almost felt left out. "Why?"

"Well, _duh_, sensei!" Mayu rolled her eyes. "Naruto's gonna become Hokage one day, so he would _have_ to know how things work!"

"Starting early with him while he's at this impressionable age is best for him," Sasuke said. "Naruto's coming along with the development of his brain—thank God."

"HEY!"

"So you think he'll become Hokage?" Kakashi asked.

"Not think—we _know_ he'll become Hokage." Sasuke closed his eyes for a moment, and then placed his hand on Naruto's shoulder. "All of us decided that we would help each other with our goals."

"Yeah, we already know," Mayu said. She moved and wrapped her arms around Naruto's neck. The blond was blushing in embarrassment at his teammates' words of faith. "Besides being friends of the future Hokage _must_ have its perks!"

"Way to kill the mood, Mayu," Naruto grumbled as he swatted her arms away. The kunoichi only giggled as Sasuke took his hand away. "Anyway, anyway, what about the rest of the teams? I wanna know!" Kakashi snapped out of his thoughts. He blinked once.

"Oh… yes," he murmured. His team looked on, raising eyebrows. The man cleared his throat. "As for the rest of the teams—two members have been promoted. Aburame Shino and Nara Shikamaru." His team was quiet. He could understand. It wasn't as though they did not care that their comrades were promoted. It was the fact that Kakashi still hadn't mentioned who on Team 7 actually advanced. The three cared more about each other than anything. That thought made the jounin smile under his mask. "Unfortunately, not everyone on this team has advanced." This comment made them flinched. However, they all continued to stare, ready for whatever answer they would get. "In fact, only one of you has made it to chuunin this time around." The three exchanged looks of apprehension. "Before I tell you who that person is, how about a little exercise? I want the three of you to be assessed. Mayu, you are to do this exercise."

Kakashi almost laughed. It looked as though the kunoichi wanted nothing more than to throw herself into a never ending pit. "Why just me? Naruto and Sasuke don't have to do it?" The man shook his head. He seemed to be enjoying this. Mayu grumbled a bit. "Fine…!" The young Ishikari crossed her arms. "I'll start with Naruto since he went first. Because I've been with him since the establishment of this team, it's safe for me to say that he has improved greatly. As far as his match goes, Naruto went with the smart options. He didn't just charge in like one would expect. He actually used his head."

"Why does it feel like I'm being insulted?" Naruto gave a sour look.

"He even showed mercy. Showing mercy instead of thoroughly destroying an opponent could potentially lead to new valuable information from the enemy. Like I said, Naruto showed great fighting tactics." In turn, the blond ninja grinned at the compliment. "Sasuke's match was… different. He quickly jumped in, choosing power over anything. It was like he was showing off." The kunoichi narrowed her eyes as she went on. _"In a way, I guess he was…"_ she thought, frowning. "And then he was caught in genjutsu… It wasn't that he was caught in the genjutsu, but the amount of time he spent in the genjutsu that worries me. While in the genjutsu, his opponent could have really dealt a lot of damage." Mayu suddenly released a sigh. "However, after he broke free of the genjutsu, he went back to his old tactics. If Sakura hadn't surrendered, I'm sure he would have beat the crap outta her."

Sasuke chose neither to protest nor agree.

"Or she could have predicted his fighting style and used it against him." The kunoichi nodded her head as she thought about it. She then clasped her hands together. "However, overall, my teammates certainly fired it up, didn't they?" A gleam of delight appeared in Mayu's eyes. She was genuinely excited. "Just remembering the blood and sweat—it was so inspiring! Oh gosh…! What am I saying? I think I've been hanging with Yasmine a little too much!" The kunoichi held her flushed cheeks as her team looked on in slight mortification. Mayu snapped out of her thoughts. She cleared her throat. "So I'm done! Are you going to tell us who got promoted now?"

"_Hm_… I have one more thing actually!" Grumbles were heard all around. "Nah, I'm kidding. I will now reveal which of you have been promoted to chuunin!" Kakashi said this in a dramatic way whilst pulling a green vest from out of nowhere. The team decided to go along with his antics. After all, this was pretty big news. They '_ooh_'d' and clapped at the chuunin vest, which seemed to be surrounded by sparkles. The jounin waved it around a couple of times before stilling the green vest. The three immediately quieted. "No more tip-toeing around. The member of Team 7 that will join the new batch of chuunin is Uzumaki Naruto." All was quiet after the announcement was made. And then-

"M-Me…?" Naruto pointed to himself. His eyes watered as the information slowly sunk in. "I'm an official chuunin? The top cock of Team 7?"

"Congratulations, Naruto. I can't put into words how proud I am." Kakashi moved to slip the vest on the blond ninja. Mayu was quick to leap on her teammate.

"Naruto, do did it!" Her own eyes welled with tears of joy, and perhaps a little envy. "You deserve it! You definitely deserve it!" Sasuke crossed his arms. He was a bit jealous as well. Still, he smirked and nodded his head in agreement. Naruto did deserve the rank of chuunin. Mayu had been right in her assessment of them.

"_I'm not ready to advance just yet… I know this,"_ Sasuke thought as he watched Naruto try to pry the kunoichi from his body. _"This only makes me want to get stronger." _The shinobi mentally nodded his head. _"Naruto getting chuunin is a confirmation of what I must do for everyone's benefit. I have to go…" _

Kakashi suddenly clamped his hands down on Naruto and Mayu's heads. "Let's celebrate over dinner! This is a great moment of achievement after all." The two rapidly nodded their heads. The jounin cut his eye over to the young Uchiha. "Sasuke, feeling jealous?" His question calmed the two down and focus their attention their teammate. For a brief moment, the boy did not answer, and then he shrugged.

"Yeah, I guess I am, but I know why neither Mayu nor I made it this time around." He uncrossed his arms. "I'm a little jealous but not angry. Naruto _does_ deserve this promotion." His dark eyes stared into Naruto's surprised blue eyes. "Congrats—this is one step closer to your goal." The blond actually sniffed and rubbed his eyes.

"Sasuke, you-"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah—don't expect mushy shit from me."

"You really know how to kill a moment, Sasuke." Mayu gave a flat look.

"You really don't need to talk, cocoon girl." Her comment was met with unison from the rest of the team.

"Not you, too, Kakashi-sensei!"

0~0

Haruno Sakura slowly released a sigh. It wasn't at all surprising that none of them got promoted to chuunin. Sure, she was great in her match, but she had given up. That was probably the only reason. Besides, it wasn't as though she cared about advancing in rank. She didn't need something as trivial as rank. She didn't want some elderly person labeling her as strong enough. The thought almost made her laugh. No one needed to tell her she strong. Sakura smirked. _"Not anymore thanks to this." _Her green eyes shifted down to the dark mark on her left arm.

The mark increased her capabilities immensely. Several times, Sakura had activated its power. She experimented with it, wanting to find out all it was capable of doing to her body. However, there seemed to be a limit. For some reason, Sakura felt as if the mark could go further, though. Her fingers lightly traced the surrounding circular mark. She would often ponder if it acted as some type of barrier. It couldn't be a part of the original. After all, Tayuya's mark had no such designs. Sakura had wanted to get the information out of the former Sound kunoichi. However, she knew nothing. Either that or she was refusing to talk. That was fine, though. Clearly, their marks were different, so she had let Tayuya slide… for now. Eventually, her curiosity would get the better of her. Then again there was always _that_ option.

The primary source…

Sakura's gaze returned to her stoic sensei, whom seemed to be discussing the training regime. It was so obvious that the training focused on only one member of the team. By the looks of Tayuya and Kin, they realized it as well. All the training was devoted to only Haruno Sakura. Mariko enjoyed playing favorites and making sure the others would not get stronger. The woman may as well flat out ignore the others. Honestly, these meetings weren't even necessary since the lessons were for Sakura. For her so called teammates, showing up was foolish.

"If you're done patronizing me, then I'm fucking leaving!" Tayuya finally interrupted. Mariko coolly watched her go. It wasn't as if she would stop her. After a moment or two, Kin looked back and forth between the jounin and her comrade. She finally shrugged before running after Tayuya. Sakura felt the tug of a smirk as she turned her back on Mariko.

"Good—they're gone. We can start your training."

"Actually, sensei, I'm still feeling the ache of going against Uchiha Sasuke." The young kunoichi whirled around with a pleasant smile on her face. "Could we postpone this until tomorrow morning?" Mariko stared down at Sakura unblinkingly. Finally, she nodded her head. "You're the best, sensei!" She wanted to gag. Forcing herself to behave this way—it was sickening, but it did its job. Many had been tricked by this act, including the Hokage. That old man had no idea.

Sakura began walking, heading toward the town. She had convinced the old fool to let her stay in her own house. He had told her she shouldn't—that she needed away to heal. Heal…? Get real! She didn't want to heal. Sakura wanted a constant reminder of what happened. An empty house where laughter used to echo did the job perfectly. Her sweet mother… The kunoichi lowered her gaze to the ground as she walked. Haruno Michiyo did not deserve the death that came upon her. And as her daughter, Haruno Sakura didn't deserve to see it.

She entered her house. "I'm home," she called out. Really, this house was not a home anymore. Of course, no one would answer. Never again would a person respond in this house. The kunoichi removed her shoes. She was in the process of placing them on the floor when a voice greeted her in return.

"Welcome back-" Her head snapped up, eyes wide. "-Haruno Sakura-san." Green eyes stared impassively back at her. Sakura stood stiff, heart beating loudly in her chest.

"Y-You…"

0~0

Trudging along, the girl forced herself not to think of it just yet. There would be plenty of time for that later. Right now, her focus was on Yamanaka Ino. Since her match with the village's bitch, the blond kunoichi had locked herself in her room. That wasn't surprising. Ino had always been dramatic about things. She had lost, so she had not wanted anyone to see her while her injuries finished healing. If she heard correctly, not even her teammates were allowed to see her. Well, her defeat was pretty bad.

It would seem as though Ino was out of her rut now. A note had appeared in her home, someone having slipped it under the door while she was sleeping. She didn't need to be so sneaky about it. However, Ino must still be somewhat embarrassed. After all, she had wanted to fight Ishikari Mayu for Sakura's sake. But she ended up losing. The note had stated that the two of them had 'to talk' and to meet her at a restaurant Sakura hadn't heard of before—_Gyenari_. The kunoichi stopped. Her green eyes looked up. She had reached her destination.

Without another thought, Sakura entered the restaurant. She spotted Ino quickly. The blond was at a back booth, near a window. Her blue gaze out of the window was aimless. Sakura made her way over to the booth. Slowly, Ino's eyes slid over to her. "Ino," she acknowledged. For a brief moment, the kunoichi only stared. Then she nodded. This prompted Sakura to sit down across from her. "Why'd you want to meet here? You're not seriously planning on eating this stuff, are you?" Sakura eyed the pieces of meat that were sizzling over the grill.

Ino somberly stared down at the cooked meat. She shrugged before grabbing a piece with her chopsticks. "I have to eat to recover faster." Now that she mentioned it, Sakura noticed the numerous bandages on arms, shoulders, and neck. Gauze was placed on both of her cheeks. Her forehead was also covered, but not by a headband. "This is Chouji's second favorite place to eat barbeque." The meat hovered over her lips for a moment. "Do you want any?"

"I'll pass."

"I thought so…" The blond took a bit out her food, chewed, swallowed, and then popped the entire piece of meat in her mouth. Sakura chose not to comment. "So you got my message."

"Yeah, that's why I'm here." A smirk appeared on her lips. "You probably want to apologize for losing against her. Its fine, I didn't think she was that strong either. I'll pay her back double for you. But you did beat her up pretty good, though." Ino did not reply. Sakura looked on in confusion. This wasn't… right. Usually, Ino would vehemently retort that the bitch was still weak and deserve all punishment that falls upon her. But no—Ino continued to calmly sit and eat the rest of the meat. Once she was finished, Sakura no longer held her tongue. "You don't need to feel depressed just because you lost! If you're so sad because of her then maybe-" Sakura raised an eyebrow. "-you're not as strong as I thought you were."

"Sakura, I didn't ask you here for this." Ino sighed heavily. She set the chopsticks down on the table. She then picked up her dark purple wallet pouch. She opened it, and then snapped it close. The blond did this repeatedly. "Tell me something, Sakura—do you know what my least favorite food is?"

"Why would I know something like this?" Sakura frowned. What was wrong with Ino? Why exactly did she ask that question? In all honesty, she didn't know. She was sure that the blond had never told her before.

"… What about my favorite food? Do you know?" Ino had masked her expression, so Sakura could not get a read on it. She had no idea what was going through the blonde's head. Still, she answered. This she knew. It was Ino after all.

"You don't have a favorite food because you're more concerned with dieting." As the words left her mouth, Sakura noticed that Ino's eyes narrowed. However, it wasn't a glare. "Okay, are you going to explain what's up with you now?" Instead of answering, Ino stood up and moved out of the booth. She straightened her simple lilac shirt and swiped imaginary dust from her dark shorts. Finally, she looked directly into Sakura's eyes. The blond kunoichi opened her mouth, but then closed it. She furrowed her eyebrows before reaching into her wallet. Out came her hand and a familiar maroon colored ribbon. Sakura recognized it instantly. "Why do you still have that?"

"Still…?" Ino questioned.

"I would have thought you'd get rid of it since I said I didn't need it." Sakura shrugged her shoulders. Ino's eyes expanded. She then chuckled. "Ino, you're being really weird…"

"No… I've just realized and confirmed something." The blond outstretched her arm. "You've blossomed… into a pretty wilted flower." Green eyes grew wide as the ribbon fell from Ino's hand and onto the grill. "Our friendship… It's over." Sakura's mouth dropped open. "In a friendship, or any type of relationship, there is give and take. Whatever we had was all about _you_. I never received anything in return. I'm sorry, but… I'm selfish, too! You didn't give anything back! And I…" Tears almost leaked out. "And I can't take it anymore. I'm… _done_." Sakura could only watch her departing back, shocked into silence. However, Ino halted. She turned her head. "By the way, my favorite food is cherry tomatoes, while my least favorite is sashimi." This time, she actually did glare. "How could a stranger know those answers, but not my supposed best friend? Sakura, I wish you were Mayu… at least then, I'd still have a friend—a true friend." An inaudible gasp escaped her throat. Those words had cut deep, piercing her very core. Ino was none the wiser because she had walked away.

_**Three**_

Sakura's hand gripped the edge of the table. Her teeth clenched, almost painfully. Her eyes squeezed closed. This was not supposed to happen. Ino had disowned her—_her_! She had lost someone else because of an imposter. Sakura opened her eyes. Her glare was filled with hatred and pure malice. _"I won't forgive you…"_ The kunoichi was unaware that her fingernails had become bloody. _"Ishikari Mayu, I will destroy you!" _

Her body abruptly relaxed. Sakura let out a sigh before standing. She briefly stared at the burning ribbon before turning her eyes away. Walking away, she put thoughts of a friendship behind her. She didn't need it corroding her primary thoughts. The kunoichi excited the restaurant and began to walk. She didn't know how far she walked or how long, but in the end, she ended up in a clearing—a training area. The sky was orange and shades of yellow, signaling the end of the day. Soon, it would be night.

In spite of her aimless walking, Sakura knew where she was. She smirked after she finally opened the rest of her senses. Sounds of sparring entered her ears. Her teammates would often come here to train with each other. Their logic was that if their own sensei wasn't training them, then they would just train with each other. Ha! The thought was laughable. The two of them weren't going to get anywhere if they repeatedly fought with weak people.

Sakura stepped forward. They must have heard her because they both halted their movements. Tayuya's eyes grew wide, but then she glared. Good—she needed to release her anger. These two were perfect for such a thing. "What the fuck do you want?" Sakura chuckled a bit. The orphan had gotten bolder.

"I want you to tell me about these marks on our bodies." Tayuya actually flinched. So she had assumed that the questions would stop? "This time, you're not going to get away, Tayu-chan. Tell me now."

"I told you last time I didn't fucking know!"

"That's just not good enough, so-"

"Sakura, just cut it out!" Kin interrupted. "If she says she doesn't know than she doesn't-" The dark-haired kunoichi did not finish her sentence. She had been backhanded by Sakura, sending her sprawling to the ground. Sakura grinned down at her.

"Peons shouldn't talk unless spoken to, ne?" Sakura's grin turned into a smile. Then her green eyes cut back to Tayuya, who involuntarily took a step back. "Now, tell me what I want to know or someone is going to get _hurt_."

"I don't even know what you want!"

"_Hahahaha_… You're a regular comedian, aren't you?" Sakura crossed her arms. "I'm going to count to three, and if you won't give me information, then I'll have to force it out of you."

"I'm not scared of you, bitch!"

"Oh, but you _should_ be, Tayuya. You have no idea what I'm capable of right now." Sakura showed her teeth and stepped closer to the trembling kunoichi. "Tell me what I want to know!" Before Tayuya opened her mouth, the pink-haired girl wrapped her hand around her neck. "This strength I have—it's amazing." Her grip tightened, causing gurgled nonsense to come from her victim's mouth. Sakura found herself chuckling. "All I want to know is how to use it to its fullest. I know you're holding back information." Tayuya was forced to her knees. Try as she might, she could not pull or push away from the stronger girl.

"I got it… I got it…" Finally, she seemed to understand her place. Slowly, Sakura released her grasp on the teen. Tayuya coughed out several times. Her fingers curled against the grass. She must be so angry that someone younger could do this. "You bitch!" It looked as though she was going to lunge at her. It was only naturally that Sakura defend herself, right? Swiftly, the girl's leg came up in a reverse ax kick. Tayuya's chin took the damage. The former Sound kunoichi flipped onto her back, holding her jaw.

"Trash like you doesn't deserve speaking so informal to me," Sakura replied with a sweet smile. "Oh yeah, I forgot I was supposed to be counting to three." She giggled lightly. "How silly of me to forget." The kunoichi uncrossed her arms, and then held up one finger. "One…" Another finger appeared. "Two… Th-"

A scream pierced the clearing.

The near screech like sound got the attention of all kunoichi present. They all turned their heads. Standing there, looking utterly distraught was the third foreigner of the Leaf village. Both Tayuya and Kin blanched at the sight of her. "What is this?" She pointed a shaking finger. "Tayu-chan acting all docile? Sakura acting even more of a bitch than she normal? Where _am_ I? What sort of alternate dimension is this?"

"_Who's_ docile, you freak?" Tayuya stood up and stomped over to the foreigner. Her fist struck the girl's head. "How many times do I have to fucking tell you not to call me that?" The girl nervously chuckled while rubbing the comical bump.

"But Tayu-chan~!" Yasmine wailed out. The kunoichi moved to hit the girl again. However, Kin interfered.

"Tayuya, you can't attack a civilian." She, too, walked over. Her dark eyes turned to Yasmine. "Why are you here, anyway? Are you lost again?"

"Well, I was going to hang out with Neji and his team tonight, but they're out celebrating their promotions and I didn't want to intrude. I bumped into Kiba, and he told me you were here with Tayu-chan."

"K-Kiba…?"

"Yeah, his team was out celebrating, too!"

"So you came to bother us?" Kin had to hold Tayuya back from beating the crap out of the foreigner.

Throughout this exchange, Sakura remained quiet. Once again, her fun had been ruined by that foreigner. She narrowed her eyes and released a scoff. She turned on her heal, deciding to leave. What a ridiculous scene she had just witnessed. _"This place… isn't fun anymore."_ The kunoichi walked away, leaving the three chattering foreigners behind. Her green eyes gazed down at the ground. Once again, she found herself walking with no direction. Sakura walked as though an invisible object was weighing her down. Her shoulders hunched. Her feet dragged. Her head bowed low.

At last she came to a stop. By now, the sun had completely set. The sky had turned dark to accommodate the full moon. Sakura breathed in deeply as her hand stretched to touch the bark of a nearby tree. Her legs gave out, causing the kunoichi to sink to her knees. _"Why…?"_ she thought. Her eyes closed as her hand slid down. _"Why did my life… turn out this way?"_ Everything that she had was gone—lost because of another.

_**One**_

Blood had sprayed everywhere in front of the dying woman. Sakura had stood there, both shocked and numb. She had felt her mother's blood sliding down her face and arms. A choked sob had escaped pass her lips. Her mother had been released by the man, which had caused her to fall to the ground. Her blood had pooled around her dead body. Uncontrollable tears had flowed from her eyes and down her cheeks. Her mother had died. Haruno Michiyo had died. Right in front of her, she had seen her mother's death. That had been the first.

_**Two**_

Once her body had been returned to her, Sakura had immediately noticed where the attention was. The three shinobi—the team that she was _supposed_ to have—had fussed over Ishikari Mayu. They had completely ignored her in favor of the body snatcher. Even Uchiha Sasuke—a boy who had not shown the slightest interest in any other girl—had been worried for her. He had completely disregarded Sakura. Uzumaki Naruto had ignored her as well. She had been tossed aside. The first boy who had ever liked her had completely disregarded her. The first boy she had ever liked had rejected her. Yes, he had done so in the past, but that time had hurt much worse. Her crush had no feelings whatsoever for her. That had been the second.

_**Three**_

And the last thing—her last loss. An image of Yamanaka Ino briefly appeared. Her best friend had left her. She had even spoken the harshest of words as she did. Once upon a time, Ino would have never ended their friendship. However, it seemed as though people change. The blond kunoichi had no longer cared for Sakura. Everyone had changed from what Sakura had known because of someone who did not belong in the first place.

"Enough already…" Sakura whispered, opening her eyes again. "That's enough…"

Liquid swelled in the corner of her eyes before bursting and spilling over. The tears flowed down her cheeks. One by one, they dripped from her skin and splashed onto the ground. Hushed sobs shook her body. Her hands reached up and clutched her head. Her brain felt like it was pounding against her skull. Sakura squeezed her eyes shut and clenched the teeth. This was painful—so utterly painful. Why did this happen? What had she done to deserve this twisted way of life? Things had been going so well for her. Her life had been near perfect. And now… Now she truly had nothing.

Sakura's quiet sobs had gradually turned into violent cries. The realization had suddenly dawned on her. Her mind couldn't take it. After the dusk had cleared, no one was there standing beside her. This hurt, this pain—it wasn't worth it. This forsaken village had nothing left to offer her. If she were to disappear… it wasn't like she'd be missed. This thought only caused the kunoichi to cry harder. This was pathetic. She had promised herself that she wouldn't cry anymore. But here she was, letting it all come out without restraint. _"Mom… Sasuke-kun… Ino…!"_ Sakura dropped her arms from her head. Her palms cupped her face. Still, tears streamed down. They appeared like veins on her hands, glowing in the moonlight. Once again, those three people appeared in her mind before slowly fading into black. Why…? Why did it have to be her—Ishikari Mayu?

_It's nice to have daughter that looks just like the mother._

_Even if she's a moron, I won't accept anyone else. … No one else will do._

_Sakura, I wish you were Mayu… at least then, I'd still have a friend—a true friend._

They had all liked her better.

"_Why is it always…?"_

Sakura, by herself, just wasn't good enough.

"_Useless, pathetic life."_

There was no one.

"Sakura-san…?"

The kunoichi gasped, hearing her name. She took her hands from her face. Slowly she turned her eyes to the person who had called out to her. Someone had called out to her. The person gave a gasp of his own. He called her name again, surprised this time. Sakura couldn't help it. Her body had just reacted on its own. Before she realized what was happening, she found herself latched onto the person, taking them both to the ground. She did not care that she didn't know him. Right now, she didn't even care for his disgustingly unique appearance. For the moment, all she cared about was that there was… someone.

Sakura didn't know how long she cried. However, finally, her sobs were fading as well as her tears. Once her body stopped trembling, hands tightly grabbed her shoulders. This is what snapped Sakura out of her dazed state. "Sakura-san, are you okay?" The kunoichi lifted herself from his body, and hastily moved away from him. How embarrassing, she thought. The stranger sat up, looking confused and concerned. Sakura turned her eyes away, and then proceeded to rub at her cheeks, trying to wipe away her moment of weakness. "You were crying just now. Why-"

"None of your business!" She got a good look at him. It was just as she thought. His appearance was unbelievably unique. He wore a lime green, sleeveless shirt—traditionally Chinese-like. He also wore white, loose fitting pants. Standard ninja sandals were on his feet. Bandages wrapped around his knuckles, wrists, and forearms. He must have been a ninja, but there was not a headband in sight. It was not his taste in fashion that stuck out, though. His hair was the shiniest bowl-cut. His eyes were perfectly dark and round. On top of that, he had the hairiest—the biggest—eyebrows she had ever seen. Some might even suspect them to be black caterpillars at a glance. A unique appearance, indeed. The shinobi stood up. However, talking was not something Sakura wanted to do at the moment.

She scoffed lightly before turning her back to the strange boy. "Wait, Sakura-san…! _Ah_!" The girl turned only to see that the person was falling forward. He was too close. He would fall and bring her down, too. The kunoichi held out her arms, preventing him from further falling forward. He blinked several times before shifting his eyes up to her. Sakura's eyebrow twitched before she pushed him upright.

"What is your problem? Clumsy?"

"N-No… Sorry. I am still in the midst of recovering from the surgery. My body cannot move as efficiently as before."

"Surgery…?" Sakura blinked once. He nodded and opened his mouth to explain.

"Yes, Tsunade-sama performed surgery on me so that I will be able to use my arm and leg again. Gaara-san was brutal in our match." He chuckled nervously as he scratched the back of his head. So he was a ninja then. "Fear not, Sakura-san! This is only a minor setback on my road to becoming the best ninja even without the use of genjutsu or ninjutsu!" The kunoichi's eyebrows knitted together.

"Wait… You can't use ninjutsu or genjutsu?"

"I suppose you would not know of my faults." He put on a smile. "I cannot produce any jutsu. That is why I focus on taijutsu. I will become even stronger than I was for my flames of youth still burn bright within me!" His thumb went up as he spoke. And his teeth seemed to sparkle. Sakura could only stand there, mouth opened in shock.

So people like this do exist?

"Anyway…" Sakura had to stop herself from rolling her eyes. "What are you doing here?"

"I was on my way home when I saw you, Sakura-san." He lowered his hand to his side. "Why is it that you were-"

"I didn't think there were any houses around here," she interrupted.

"There is one actually. I live alone in a small house a few meters away."

"… You live by yourself?"

"Yes. I am an orphan."

He didn't expand on the subject. It must be too personal to just say out loud. Sakura lowered her head a bit. "Me, too," she found herself talking. "I live by myself, too. My mom died in the invasion."

"Sakura-san…" And then "You are a great person." Baffled, the kunoichi merely gave him an incredulous look. "_Ah_, I am sorry for my bluntness. However, I mean what I say. Unlike you, I lost my family when I was very young. I can barely remember them now. You lost your mother recently, yet you can still go on and get stronger. Please do not tell Gai-sensei, but if I was to lose my arm and leg, and my family in the same time frame, I would have given up." He closed his eyes for a moment. Sakura did not know who this sensei was, but she decided to continue to listen. "In fact, I really did almost give my dream up." He opened his eyes again. "Sakura-san, if it had not been for your words, perhaps I would have."

The pink-haired girl narrowed her eyes. It suddenly occurred to Sakura that this was another person who had been pulled in by Ishikari Mayu whilst she was in possession of her body. She opened her mouth to tell him that he had the wrong person and that she didn't even know who he was. However, her lips shut firmly. She, herself, didn't understand the reason for it. Perhaps she just didn't want that body snatcher to have someone else on her side. Sakura put on a smile. "I do what I can. Thank you for putting my words into consideration."

"YOSH!" He was suddenly pulling his nice guy pose again. The sparkle of his teeth could be used as the sun. "Let us continue to grow stronger so that we may reach our goals!" A green eye twitched in response. The shinobi looked as though he was going to turn. However, he froze, and then turned back to face her. There was a frown on his face. "Sakura-san… I do not wish to see your tears again." The kunoichi looked stunned. She had thought he'd forgotten. "I care for you a great deal. Rock Lee is not only there for your protection! If there's anything you want or need, I am here. Even if it is just a listener, I will be there."

Sakura bowed her head. It was the first time, in a long time, that anyone had said something like that to her. Again, she could feel her eyes sting with unnecessary liquid. A ghost of a smile appeared for just a moment. "Alright then. If you care so much then prove it." The shinobi, Rock Lee, made a noise of puzzlement. The kunoichi blinked, releasing the few droplets. However, that was it. She lifted her head and met his eyes. "No matter what happens… No matter what you're told… continue to pursue me, save me, protect me."

"Sakura-san, I do not understand."

"Can you promise me?"

"I… Of course!" Lee clenched his fist. "It is like I said; I will do anything you ask of me!" Sakura chuckled a bit.

"You won't do anything," she murmured. "But that promise—you have to keep it." The male enthusiastically nodded his head. Sakura lowered her gaze to the grass. A sudden wind swept through the area. The kunoichi pushed her hair from her face. She walked forward, moving pass the ninja. "Prove to me that there is someone to support me." Her voice was barely above a whisper. She heard him shift, most likely turning to watch her go, but she did not look back. He called out to her again. It was so nice. Hearing her name from another without contempt—it was nice.

"Thank you, Lee."

0~0

Quietly, she shut the door behind her. Not bothering to remove her shoes, Sakura walked further into her house. Up the stairs she went. She slowly moved, taking time to look into her mother's room. Everything had become quiet without her—quiet and dark. Memories of better times suddenly flooded her mind. Sakura mentally shook them away. She continued down the hall to her own room. The door creaked open even before her hand reached the doorknob. Untroubled by this, she pushed the door open completely.

Leaning against her closet was the same shinobi she had left hours before. Under the light of the moon, his skin seemed paler—almost an otherworldly glow. It was probably his white hair that affected this almost ghostly appearance. His vivid green eyes slid over to her form, watching her without a hint of emotion on his face. He had four red markings on his face. Two were dots near the center of his forehead. The other markings were under his eyes, one on each side. The older teen pushed himself from the closet and turned his body towards Sakura. "Have you reached a decision?" he asked.

For a moment, Sakura only stared at the circular pattern of three curved lines on the base of his throat. He had told her that his seal—the Cursed Seal of Earth—was as powerful as the one on her arm—the Cursed Seal of Heaven. He knew more information that Tayuya did. Also, he was most likely stronger than her, too. "I think my decision was clear from the beginning, Kimimaro-sama." The kunoichi smirked. Her mark turned fiery, and then spread to half of her entire body. The older shinobi only blinked.

"You… can control it already?"

"Practice makes perfect, ne?" After she spoke, she willed the mark to return to its natural state. "Now tell me—what else can I do with this?" Kimimaro stepped closer, and then nodded his head.

"As of right now, you are only in Stage One. There is another state," he said. "With the next stage comes a greater power. However, to get to the next stage, you will need to die." Sakura frowned, not liking the sound of that. Kimimaro pulled a glass bottle and tossed it to her. She reflexively caught it and examined the contents inside. There were small round beads—smaller than soldier pills. "It's a mind drug, and you need to take it. This pill will force the next stage to come out. In Stage Two, the speed of the seal spreads will rapidly increase. Alone like that, you will die. To control the next stage, time is needed. Once Stage Two is awakened within you, it will take only few minutes for you to die."

"Dramatics aren't necessary. I know you wouldn't come here just to elaborately kill me." Sakura clenched the bottle in her hand. "So how about we just skip the information? I'll take the pill, and you'll do your job—no questions asked." Kimimaro chose not to respond. "Didn't I already imply that I will become loyal to Orochimaru-sama? Questioning him, doubting him—those aren't traits of his future most loyal underling, right?" Again, the older ninja remained silent… for a time. He then dropped down to his knee and bowed his head. Sakura raised a brow at his sudden change in behavior. "Why are you doing this?"

"My apologies, Sakura-sama." He did not lift his head. "It was ordered by Orochimaru-sama to treat you as my superior once your decision was made clear." His head sunk lower. "Forgive my earlier rudeness."

"_Hmph_… Alright, I'll forgive you," Sakura replied. She walked in front of her full body mirror. The stains of her tears had long since vanished. The pink-haired girl frowned at her reflection. Closing her eyes, she reached around her neck. She untied the knot of her headband. After a moment's pause of letting her headband hand, Sakura grabbed the blue cloth, and then yanked it down. It fell to the floor with a clang. "I am no longer a ninja of the Hidden Leaf Village. Orochimaru-sama may do with me as he pleases for I am his to control." Kimimaro said not a word at her declaration. She turned to him. "Now rise." As ordered, the older ninja did as told. The kunoichi held of the bottle. "Do I take this now or later?"

"Taking it now will be in your best interest. In the presence of Orochimaru-sama, unleashing your full potential will be a sign of respect and loyalty." The kunoichi nodded her head once. She then uncorked the bottle. Once a pill fell into her palm, she closed the bottle, and then tossed it back to Kimimaro. The Sound shinobi tucked it away, and then pulled the giant scroll from his back. Sakura watched it unwrap it and lay it upon the floor. She stepped back as his head touched the inscription. A large barrel appeared. His green eyes connected with hers. "Please take the pill now, Sakura-sama."

"I understand." She popped the tiny pill in her mouth. Briefly, she rubbed the pill against the roof of her mouth with her tongue. She then swallowed it whole. Once more, three individuals materialized in her head. They had left her. Now, she was leaving them behind. _"And so it begins."_ Without warning, excruciating pain overcame her body. She clenched her teeth to muffle the scream. Hugging herself for some type of comfort did not seem to reduce the pain. But this was fine. Even as Sakura fell to her knees, she could not help but think this type of pain was fine. The only thing that mattered now was the results. _"I won't die!"_ Her consciousness was beginning to fade. Her world began to dim and darken. "I refuse to die until everyone responsible is brought down."

The wicked grin remained on her face even as she fell unconscious.

0~0

Tayuya sharply turned her head. She stopped walking, prompting the two behind her to do the same. "Ne, Tayu-chan! What's wrong?" The former Sound kunoichi ignored the foreigner. She narrowed her eyes and enhanced her senses. Her eyes widen. Stunned fear had replaced her annoyed look. Yasmine, confused, tilted her head to the side. She waved a hand in front of Tayuya's face. "What's wrong?" The foreigner gasped, noticing that Tayuya's body was visibly shaken. Without so much as a heated retort, the kunoichi took off in the opposite direction, leaving behind her teammate and Yasmine. "_Eh_…? What's wrong with her?" Kin watched her teammate until she disappeared.

"I… have no idea."

The former sound kunoichi raced through the town, hoping and praying that what she felt wasn't real. _"It can't be… Why him?"_ After a few minutes, Tayuya came to a stop. The surge of familiar power came from this place. _"… A house…?"_ The red head dropped down in front of the door. There was no indication of a family name. Well, there was, but the name was scratched out, making it unreadable. Cold sweat formed and slid down Tayuya's face. She hesitantly opened the door. An odd wind came from within the house, causing a shiver to run up the brown-eyed girl's spine. She swallowed hard as she entered the house.

The door slammed shut behind her. Tayuya jumped in surprise. Her entire body became tense. There seemed to be no one home. The lights were shut off. It was almost completely dark. Still, she felt a presence. Forcing herself to move, Tayuya examined the house, searching for some type of confirmation. It was a confirmation she did not want. However, before she could go another step forward, a chill made the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. Her eyes widened. "Tayuya…" His calm voice entered her ear. He was right behind her, whispering in her ear. No… It was as she feared. "There is a reason why I'm not going to kill you here." Faster and harder her heart beat. She hadn't felt this way since she first met this bastard. But why was he here? He was supposed to be on his deathbed! "It is because Orochimaru-sama… wants you for himself."

The kunoichi flinched at his words. Her body fiercely shuddered. She knew it! She fucking knew it! Orochimaru was a cold, sadistic bastard who did not take treachery well. One day, he would come for her and torture her until her last breath. For the moment, though, she was safe. Well, at least her life was. There was no telling what Kimimaro was going to do. He is—and always will be—dangerously loyal to the snake Sanin. "That's not like you," she forced her voice to come out. "You'd willingly defy him if it means getting rid of the trash, right?"

"Make no mistake, Tayuya. I do want to end your life right now. However, I won't be living too much longer. It would be disrespectful to Orochimaru-sama if I were to take away his joy, and then leave this world. That is something I do not wish to do."

"Speaking of which, why are you here in the first place?" Tayuya was scared. There was no doubting that. She hadn't—and would never—use foul language in the presence of Kimimaro. "You're pretty much a lost cause." The older ninja pulled away and stood at his full height. Still, Tayuya did not move from her frozen stance.

"Exactly. But this is the only thing I can do for him." He touched her shoulder and moved her around. Beside him, there was a barrel. The barrel designed for sealing until raw power was to be released. Tayuya gapped at the sight. Of the Sound Five, Kimimaro was the only one who could perform the barrier technique by himself. He was the strongest—more powerful than them all combined. "I am to deliver Orochimaru-sama's next vassal."

"U… Uchiha Sasuke?" She couldn't believe her ears. The impression that that kid left was a strong one. She didn't think he would willingly leave the village. His teammates were too important to him. He couldn't have accepted an invite to the Sound village with bonds like those left behind, right? Tayuya calmed herself somewhat. She was jumping to conclusions. Uchiha Sasuke did not bear a mark from Orochimaru. It was that bitch on her team that- Realization dawned on her. "N-No…! It's Haruno Sakura!"

"Precisely."

"But why? She's a nobody!

"That is not your concern." Kimimaro lifted his hand. A sharp bone protruded from his palm. Tayuya's body had come under immense pain. This bastard—he was as fast as she remembered. Her blood splashed onto the wooden floor. Dark liquid spilled from her lips. "You will not die for I have purposefully missed your vitals. However, you will be in pain until you pass out. His weapon drove in a bit deeper. More of her blood gushed out from the injury and her mouth. "You will have a scar. Let it be a reminder of your fate." Slowly, painfully slow, he pushed her from his weapon-like bone. Tayuya fell to the floor, surrounded by a pool of blood. Kimimaro said nothing more. He picked up the barrel, and then left.

"I have to… I-I ha-have to te-tell some-someone…" The kunoichi clenched her teeth as she attempted to drag her body to the front door. _"I have to…" _She didn't make it in time. Tayuya fell unconscious mere meters away from the door.

It would be a full twenty-four hours before she was discovered.

0~0

Deep inside one of the countless lairs of Orochimaru, Sakura followed behind Kimimaro. Beside her, there was a one-armed ninja that went by the name of Kabuto. The three of them walked past cages full of people. However, the kunoichi paid no mind to them. Apparently, she had arrived in the Land of Sound hours before. She had just recently awakened, though. Upon her reawakening, Sakura felt immense power flowing through her chakra system. It had felt so much different than before.

Indeed, she had changed. Not only her power level, but her appearance had changed as well. Almost half of her face was marked with the cursed seal. Her left eye had taken on a yellowish gold color. The white of her eyes had darkened considerably—pitch black in shade. She must have looked like a freak. A smirk made its way onto her lips. Not that she cared. This power—it was worth it.

Finally, Kimimaro came to a stop. He opened a door, calling out to Orochimaru. Sakura stilled herself before moving forward. The room was dimly lit just like the rest of this hideout. Like a king on his throne, Orochimaru sat at the end of the room. Almost his entire body was wrapped in bandages. Still, one of his snake-like eyes stared at her. He had short white hair and pale skin. This sickly looking person was the great snake Sanin? This was the man that orchestrated the attack on the Leaf—the man responsible for her mother's death?

**Inner Sakura:** _**SHĀNNARŌ**_**! This bastard will die before I get my hands on him!**

The kunoichi walked forward, and then stopped. As a sign of respect, she dropped to her knees and bowed her head. "I am here to serve you, Orochimaru-sama." Sakura could feel his creepy eye on her. She willed herself not to shudder in front of him. "However, before this relationship goes further, there is something you need to know about me." The snake Sanin made a noise of inquiry. "For several months, I was not in the possession of my own body. I, Haruno Sakura, was not there when my body received the honor of the Cursed Seal of Heaven. I was not there when you took an interest in me. I do not have the power to reside inside another and copy their bloodline."

The atmosphere immediately tensed once she finished speaking. An enraged "What?" came from the Sanin's covered mouth. As she thought, he was not pleased in the least. "Do you mean to say that my efforts are wasted on some no name _trash_?" Two pairs of footsteps entered the room. _Ah_… So this was the source Tayuya had taken from. Sakura did not lift her head. She would rather not see an equally angry eye glaring at her.

"With all due respect, Orochimaru-sama… No, your efforts are not wasted." Sakura opened her eyes, yet kept her gaze to the floor. "Weeks ago, I received your message, telling me to tempt Uchiha Sasuke. When I fought against him, I did as you said. Eventually, he will give in to the temptation of your power… and willingly come to you. Second, I have information concerning the kunoichi you really wanted—Ishikari Mayu."

"Ishikari Mayu…?"

"Yes, she is the one whom can copy and use Kekkei Genkai."

"Ishikari, you say?" Kabuto finally spoke. "_Ah_, it all makes sense now."

"What are you talking about, Kabuto?" Orochimaru's disgruntled voice asked.

"Within your former village, there existed the Ishikari clan. It was an isolated clan that only a select few knew about. As you know, the members of this clan have the ability to copy techniques belonging to an advanced bloodline. Their appearances also change depending on who they enter."

"I see."

"If that is where your information is cut off, then I'd like to continue," Sakura said. "The clan was eliminated by the Uchiha clan. Currently, there are only two members left. One is a master of Ishikari. However, he would be of no use to you. The other, Ishikari Mayu, has the skill and DNA to use a forbidden jutsu."

"Forbidden jutsu…?"

"Yes. The reason this jutsu is forbidden is because it can transport a person to a different time and place. You see, the ability of the Ishikari clan is to switch bodies. However, when she was in my body, I remained in an unconscious state. I believed myself to be dreaming, and when I did finally awaken, I assumed everything was normal, not realizing that I was in someone else's body."

"What makes you sure that a jutsu was used in a different time?" Orochimaru asked. His curiosity was rising.

"Before I woke up in her body, it appeared out of nowhere. Almost four years ago, Ishikari Mayu disappeared the night her clan was destroyed. There was no record of her body ever being found. She was not presumed dead. She had vanished from this world, only to come back in my body. The reason for her disappearance comes from her mother, Ishikari Mayuka, who casted the jutsu on her daughter."

"How do you know this?" Kabuto questioned.

"Simple, really… I'm a no name. It was incredibly easy to get in and out of places because who would suspect an ordinary person to be snooping through files?" Sakura smirked. "I have acquired much more information as well, Orochimaru-sama. A lot of information has been stored in my mind. Knowledge can be power, ne?" Finally, she lifted her head. The kunoichi reached into her pocket, pulling out two glass vials. In one of them, there was a maroon colored liquid. In the other were strands of dark hair. "This is the DNA of Ishikari Mayu. I'm sure you would like to experiment? Since you're a scientist?" Orochimaru gave a dark chuckle.

"Perhaps you will be of use to me, no name."

"Third," she continued, hushing the Sanin. "This mark that I've received has made me so powerful." The seal moved, spreading further across her face and body before turning black again. Now, both of her eyes were yellow. Still, chakra continued to pour out of her, creating an artificial wind. Her short hair blew to and fro. Behind her, she could hear the startled gasp from Kabuto. In front of her, Orochimaru seemed slightly more pleased. Sakura stopped her display, allowing the curse mark to recede completely. Her green eyes remained on the bandaged man. "So you see… your efforts have not been wasted. Teach me and give me power. I will be your most loyal subordinate, Kimimaro be damned."

"My, my… You're quite the bold one, aren't you?" Again, Orochimaru chuckled. "But I must ask… Why do you seek power? Why are you determined to have it?"

"Simple," Sakura repeated. Her eyes expanded and her hair seemed to stand, giving her a fierce expression like a wild beast which had finally been released from its cage. "Bad things come in trios, right? But the simple answer is-" An image of Ishikari Mayu's smiling face appeared as well as the others that caused her mother's premature death. The kunoichi showed her teeth in a malicious grin. "-I am… an _avenger_!"

**Inner Sakura: And I won't stop until my vendetta is complete! **_**SHĀNNARŌ**_**!**

0~0

Finished March 6, 2011

Hm… This chapter… was harder than I expected it to be hence why it's been a month already.

**Sakura**: I said a long time ago that I was excited to have a chapter dedicated to Sakura. Seriously, this stuff just writes itself. She is no longer canon Sakura, and with good reason. She's… _crazier_ in this one. _Haha_! Anyway, that scene with Lee—don't go analyzing it, people. Romance is not going to be involved. However, you can discuss and comment on how it relates to Sakura deciding to leave the village. :D And before you go threatening me with pitchforks, I think Orochimaru is in character. Honestly, I don't think he'd kill anyone who would willingly come to him, asking to work for him. Also, I don't think he'd kill anyone unless it was somehow beneficial for him. For those who don't like what I've done to Sakura, because she's way too powerful, oh well…! Sorry, folks, but her strength is a vital part of the plot I have going, so… Yeah.

Next time: _Thug Ninja for Life_!

I'm looking forward to your comments!


	33. Thug Ninja for Life

Behind closed lids, eyeballs moved to and fro. Finally, brown eyes were revealed. The lights of the hospital glared down. However, the patient held in her wince. She blinked several times, giving her eyes time to adjust. Her entire body felt numb. A finger twitched. She must be drugged. Slowly, previous events flooded her mind. Her heart rate accelerated and her breathing hitched. She hadn't even been aware that she was almost violently shaking until hands held her down.

A familiar voice begged her to calm down. It was Tsuchi Kin. Her teammate was here. Tayuya found herself calming down. She opened her eyes again, hissing at the brightness in the room. Fucking hospitals, she thought. Tayuya felt the ache of body, yet she sat up. It felt even worse. The mere strain of sitting up caused her body to be overwhelmed with subtle pain. Thank god for drugs… "What happened to you?" Kin asked. She sat back down on the stool beside the bed. "Mariko-sensei went to get Haruno for training, but she found you instead, bleeding all over the place."

"How much time?" Tayuya grunted.

"You disappeared Friday night." Kin narrowed her eyes as she crossed her arms. "It's almost midnight on Saturday. I'm surprised you didn't die." The red haired kunoichi grimaced. "So tell me what happened." Tayuya closed her eyes and swallowed the sudden lump in her throat. Finally, she looked towards her teammate and told her everything that transpired Friday night. "No way! So she's _gone_?" Kin's teammate nodded her head. For a moment, the two were in silence. "I feel…" Her shoulders sagged. Her eyes squeezed shut. "I feel relieved." Furrowing her eyebrows, Tayuya stared down at her lap. Before she could respond, however, Kin abruptly stood. "You injury reopened. I'm getting the nurse." She briskly made her exit, leaving Tayuya alone.

Relief…

Was that the reason she felt at peace now even with the memory of Kimimaro fresh in her mind? Haruno Sakura had left the Leaf Village. And it didn't seem as if she would be coming back either. Tayuya breathed out slowly as she closed her eyes. There was a weird feeling in her throat. She couldn't explain it, but it was a bit hard to breathe. Slowly she fell back, keeping her eyes closed. She had been in this forsaken village for months now, almost a whole year, and she had yet to feel something like this. Tranquility. Tayuya no longer had to worry about that overbearing teammate of hers. This was good. She could move on now. She didn't have to feel fear anymore.

A hand reached down. Blood soaked through the bandages that were wrapped around her stomach and back. Kimimaro had jammed his spiked weapon right above her hip bone. Still, pain was better than fear. He had taken away that fear in exchange for a scar. Tayuya remembered his words clearly. A constant reminder, he had said. The kunoichi almost scoffed. He knew nothing about constant reminders.

Her thoughts came to a halt when the door slid open with a loud bang. Startled, Tayuya's head snapped toward the door. Not only did Kin return, but Mariko was there, too. Even the Hokage had shown her face. Surprised, the injured kunoichi tried to sit up. "That's not necessary, Tayuya." Tsunade spoke and came to a stop beside her bed. "Tell me everything that happened." The red head grimaced as the busty woman physical examined her wound. Nonetheless, she repeated the story of her discovering an enemy. "I see…" Tsunade did not show a reaction to the news. Green chakra emitted from two fingers. Whatever medical jutsu she used had closed the injury. However, the skin was noticeably lighter. "Do you know the reason that Orochimaru wants Haruno Sakura?"

"No, I don't." Tayuya lowered her head and pulled the hair away from her neck, allowing the dark mark to be shown. "But she did have something like this. Hers is stronger than mine, though."

"Do you think she willingly left?" Kin asked.

"She definitely left on her own."

"What makes you say a thing like that?" Mariko asked, narrowing her eyes. "Sakura is a promising student. She would never abandon the village!"

"She did! I'm sure of it!"

"Why should anyone believe an enemy like-"

"Watanabe!" The Hokage cut her eyes to the younger woman. Mariko visibly flinched under the fierce gaze of her leader. "That is no way to speak with your student, especially considering the situation."

"I apologize, Hokage-sama." Grey eyes lowered to the floor. Tsunade kept her eyes on the jounin instructor for a bit longer. That small interaction between her two subordinate did not feel right at all. In fact, the favoritism was highly implied. The blond woman frowned and narrowed her eyes.

Finally she returned a stare to Tayuya. The kunoichi's brown eyes were looking away from her sensei. Her fingers were clenching the bed sheet underneath her. Then Tsunade focused on Tsuchi Kin. The dark-haired girl had decided not to stand near her sensei. She had instead gone over to the other side of the bed. Years of experience told Tsunade something was off with the relationship of this team. Sure, Kin and Tayuya seemed fine with each other. However, Mariko stood alone, distancing herself away from the rest of the team. In situations like these, it was expected of the sensei to provide comfort to the pupil. This was not healthy.

Placing those thoughts away for now, Tsunade opened her mouth. "Do you know if there is a reason why Haruno Sakura would abandon the Leaf?" Kin was the one who spoke up.

"She wanted to become stronger. When we were together, that's all she talked about—getting stronger. Other than that, neither Tayuya nor I really know anything about her," she murmured. Tsunade's frown deepened. Was this confirmation? "Since there's a high chance that she left willingly, will she be considered a Missing-nin?"

"At this point, I am not sure what I will do."

"If I may, Hokage-sama." The three turned to Mariko. "Haruno Sakura is a good child. There is nothing pointing to her willingly leaving. After all, the girl did state that my student was in some type of sealed barrel."

"True," Tsunade said after a moment's pause. She turned. "I will critically think of what must be done about her." The leader glanced back at the two girls for a moment. "In the meantime-" Her focus settled on Mariko. "I have to discuss something with you, Watanabe. Come with me."

The two genin watched the women leave. They then turned to each other. "I'm… glad you made it," Kin muttered. Her dark eyes looked away. "Just don't do something so stupid again. If you're freaked out about something, just tell me. We're comrades, aren't we?" Tayuya didn't reply. "Besides, we're on the only two former Sound kunoichi in this village. We have to stick together." Kin placed a hand on her teammate's shoulder. "Now that she's gone, we don't have to fear her anymore."

"… I know." The weird feeling in her throat returned.

And then the tears came.

0~0

Naruto yawned loudly, and then rubbed at his left eye. It was so late, and yet that old woman had decided to call him out. Well, not just him. His teammates were by his side, too. Sasuke looked as though he wanted to kill something. Mayu looked like the walking dead. Her pillow was still clutched in her arms. It was Saturday night. Technically, it was Sunday morning, so really it was so early. Normal people would be sleeping at this hour. Nope, not good ol' Granny! And apparently, Team 7 wasn't the only team here. Blue eyes took a quick look around the room. All the rookie teams had been assembled. Naruto blinked. Everyone was accounted for except Team Kunoichi.

Sasuke crossed his arms and glowered at the floor. Lately, he had been having random headaches. Being woken up so suddenly did not help things either. It had cleared before he and his team had reached the Hokage's office. But it did not decrease his irritation any. He would think the woman would be drunk off her ass during times like these. Sasuke mentally scoffed. Apparently not. He, Naruto, and Mayu had hastily made their way here after that ANBU member woke them. He didn't even have time to put on a shirt. His eyebrow twitched. That was another thing that caused his annoyance to rise. Yamanaka Ino and Tenten kept ogling him from their places in line. Scowling, he imagined Sakura doing the same but with intent to sexually harass. A dark eyebrow rose. Speaking of which, where was she? And her team, for that matter. _"Why did the Hokage gather the teams up, but not that one, anyway?"_ he thought.

Mayu, as if in a trance, stared straight ahead. The pillow she held provided little to no comfort and warmth. Why was it so cold in here? Perhaps wearing Naruto's fish cake covered boxers and one of Sasuke's black tank tops to bed wasn't the best option? Her body had not caught up with the fact that it was awake. She was half-surprised her legs didn't give out from underneath her. It wasn't like she was exhausted. Generally, she woke up sluggish. Unexpectedly, she had risen from her slumber, so the lethargic effects seemed to be greater. Honestly, she moved and felt like a zombie. Wasn't it too early for a mission, anyway? Besides, a mission didn't need _this_ many people. At this ungodly hour, most of the ninja in the room seemed as sleepy and annoyed she looked. Well, except Lee. He always looked energetic. The older ninja must wake up at the crack of dawn. Everyone else, _nope_! However, Tenten and Ino were stealing glances at her dark-haired teammate. Other than that, the rookie teams were here and hating it. Mayu knitted her brows. On second thought, Team Kunoichi wasn't here. More questions popped in her head, causing more confusion. This confusion actually brought her out of her indolent daze. Down to busy, already!

"Okay, what the heck is going on?" Mayu asked. "Hokage-sama, why have you brought us here?"

Tsunade swiveled in her chair, showing a serious expression. Immediately, the group of eleven straightened up and mirrored their leader's appearance. The Fifth Hokage leaned forward, placing her elbows on her desk and lacing her fingers together in front of her face. "We have a bit of a problem." The batch of genin and chuunin waited for her to continue in silence. "Friday night, your comrade disappeared from this village." Several pairs of eyes widen. "Her name is Haruno Sakura." There were a few who actually gasped, Mayu being one of them. "After some questioning, it appears that she is now with Orochimaru."

"What? Orochimaru?" Mayu exclaimed in shock.

"Why would she be involved with that type of man?" Shikamaru questioned.

Everyone in the room knew of Orochimaru, the snake Sanin. That man was a former ninja of the Leaf village. Unlike the other two Sanin, he became a traitor—a rogue ninja. Before he defected, the many kidnapping and killing of fellow ninja was traced back to him. He had been using them for experiments. Truly, Orochimaru was a vile and despicable type of person. For someone who had high hopes for them, he had walked down such a dark past. Parents used to tell scary stories based on his twisted exploits. He was dangerous in every sense of the word.

"That is precisely why I called you here," Tsunade stated. "Do any of you know how Orochimaru and Haruno Sakura are connected?"

"For one," Sasuke spoke up. "There's that mark on her arm. Orochimaru placed it on her body." Tsunade nodded her head. Already, she was informed of what happened to Team 7 in the previous chuunin exam. "There is a connection to him. It was a mere accident that she received the mark. However, it was Ishikari Mayu in her body that got the mark. While in Haruno Sakura's body, my teammate carried out her clan's jutsu, causing Orochimaru to become interested. My guess is that he doesn't know about this switch."

"Are you suggesting that Orochimaru took her?" Tsunade asked.

"I wasn't there. I don't know what happened." Sasuke frowned and looked away. The twitching of the leader's lips almost went unnoticed.

"It is suggested," she went on. "That Haruno Sakura left the village willingly. This is unconfirmed, but is highly possible. What I want to know is why. You eleven are in her age group, so please give me something."

No one uttered a word. Most were not acquainted with the _real_ Haruno Sakura. Those that were acquainted seemed just as confused as everyone else. There was no reason for her to leave the village. "_Haah_…" Shikamaru made a noise, causing heads to turn his way. "If she did leave the village willingly, and I'm not saying she did, there are only two possible options as to why she did it." He shoved his hands into his pockets. "Troublesome as it seems, everyone has the same instincts. When a person reaches a crossroad, there are usually two ways to go. Behind them is the life they once lived. Something in their life triggered this crossroad, causing them to make a decision. Whatever this something is could be either fear or abandonment."

"What do you mean, Nara?" Tsunade asked.

"I mean, either fear or abandonment problems drives a person to leave," he answered. "Something in this village _made_ her run away or she felt no one wanted her, and so she left."

"It can't be…" Beside Shikamaru, his teammate pressed fingers to her lips. The Fifth turned her eyes to the younger blond. She asked why she had made that comment. Guilty, the kunoichi's blue eyes lowered to the floor. "On Friday… I told her that our friendship was over." Shikamaru and Chouji seemed stunned by Ino's statement. They knew the two girls had a long history together. They understood that their teammate cared a great deal for Haruno Sakura. It wasn't right that Ino was the one who ended the friendship. "I… was the one who abandoned her."

"So that was her trigger?" Neji remarked.

"Wait a moment," Hinata said. "I, too, was her friend… It cannot solely be blamed on Ino. After my match in the chuunin exam, I told her that I was through with her. Since then, we have not spoken."

"But why did you suddenly end your friendships with her?" Tenten asked.

"Yeah, Hinata, you seemed chummy with her for awhile," Kiba commented.

"That is…" Hinata seemed hesitant to continue. "Who I became friends with was not Haruno Sakura." Her pale eyes turned to the side, trying not to look at anyone. "The person who approached me was Ishikari Mayu-san." She swallowed the lump in her throat. "That is who I… began to care for." The kunoichi in question narrowed her eyes. "When Sakura-san returned to her rightful body, she told lies about Mayu-san, and so I believed and sided with her, thinking she was still my friend." The Hyuga heiress poked her index fingers together. It was a nervous habit she had thought she got rid of. "Once I realized that I was only a pawn for her, I told her that I wanted nothing to do with her plans against Mayu-san."

"_Plans…?"_ Sasuke almost let out a growl.

"If what you say is true, Hinata-sama, then you are not to blame," Neji responded. "If she merely viewed you as a pawn, you couldn't be the reason for her leaving." His calculating gaze turned to the blond kunoichi. "Yamanaka-san, you have yet to give a reason as to why you gave up your friendship with her." Ino frowned. "A comrade has left us. We need to get to the bottom of this situation before action can occur. Again I ask you why you felt the need to disown her."

"She had changed," she whispered. Ino closed her eyes. "I loved her like a sister, and she ended our friendship before it could evolve into something strong. Instead, I forged a great bond with Ishikari Mayu." Her fist clenched at her side. "Like Hinata said, when Sakura got her body back, she told us lies. She used my anger to her advantage. She wasn't the Sakura I used to know. I could no longer consider her, the selfish person she had become, a friend." Finally, she opened her eyes again. "So what if that was selfish of me?" As if someone had said she was, Ino shouted out her defense. "All I did was give to her, and she couldn't even remember my favorite _food_!"

"Calm down, Yamanaka," Tsunade said. Shikamaru and Chouji placed comforting hands on the girl's trembling shoulders. It looked as though Ino was forcing herself not to shed tears. The Fifth set her palms on the desk. "What you did may have contributed to her leaving. However, one event doesn't have the power to impact a person."

"I agree," Shikamaru said. "There is always someone—parents, perhaps? A sensei?"

"Her parents have died," Lee muttered. "Sakura-san told me that herself."

"That's right," Hinata concurred with a nod. "Sakura-san did mention that her mother had died in the invasion."

During this time, Mayu did not say a word. Her mind was running a mile a minute. Words were repeated in her head. Every situation that popped up, she was involved somehow. _She_ was at the root of it all. "No…" The pillow dropped from her arms. The soft impact was enough to grab everyone's attention. With wide eyes, her unfocused gaze looked ahead. "It's me… I'm the common denominator. It's my fa-fault. _I'm_ the reason she left!" Sasuke tried to protest, but Mayu only shook her head, blocking him out. "Because I was in her body, I unintentionally messed up the relationships she had with others. I didn't pretend to be Sakura. I was _myself_ during the time period that I was in her body. _I_ repaired the friendship between her and Ino. _I_ came to Hinata and made her my friend and sparring partner. I even formed a relationship with her _mother_, which is why Michiyo-san was at the chuunin exam, which led to her _death_! I did so many things while I was in her body that was never supposed to happen." The kunoichi squeezed her eyes shut. "So you see, it's _my_ fault! I took and twisted her Haruno Sakura's life around, so that when she did come back, she could not become accustomed to it. I am to bla-"

A punch to the face effectively cut the girl off.

It didn't come as a surprise for Sasuke, but everyone else had been shocked that Uzumaki Naruto had punched the distressed kunoichi. "Mayu," his voice was calm. "It's not your fault. We've already talked about this, too." The girl opened her mouth to protest. Naruto merely grabbed his teammate's shoulder. "No, you had nothing to do with the choices Sakura made. She was the one who lied about you, making Hinata and Ino leave her. They left her because they realized _she_ was not a good person to be around. She is the one at fault—_not_ you." Mayu looked down at the floor. "You did a lot of good while you were her. Don't write that off just because Sakura ended up leaving."

"Besides, we still don't know if she left willingly or not," Sasuke mentioned. He scoffed. "I almost wished you didn't care so much."

"… Sorry," Mayu murmured.

The room fell into silence after that. It said that way for a moment or three before Tsunade cleared her throat. The teams stood at attention again, awaiting the words of their leader. "As it has been twenty-four hours since her disappearance, it would be foolish to send a retrieval squad. Haruno Sakura is already out of reach. There is, however, something that can be done." The Fifth Fire Shadow clasped her hands together in front of her. "She will be labeled as a Missing-nin or-"

"What?" Lee was the one who shouted. Catching himself, the older ninja humbly bowed in apology. "Pardon my outburst, Hokage-sama. However, I feel that I must protest! Sakura-san, right now, is lost!" He did not lift his head even as Tenten muttered his name. "I, too, met with Sakura-san before she left the village. She wants someone to save her. She, herself, told me so. I cannot live with myself if I break the promise to her. I must pursue her, protect her, and save her!" His torso lowered even further. "Please allow me the time to get stronger, so that I may bring her back. Sakura-san needs someone, and I am willing to be that someone!" For a time, no one reacted.

"I say we shouldn't care. She made her decision. Besides, I didn't like the way that she treated my bitch," Kiba muttered as he crossed his arms. For the most part, he was ignored. However, Akamaru barked in agreement. Tsunade raised a brow again. The relationship between Team Kunoichi was just as she imagined. More than likely, they would end of splitting apart.

"You can't make her a Missing-nin!" Ino exclaimed. "Yes, I ended our friendship, but I still care about Sakura. Lee's right, she is alone, and I contributed to that." The kunoichi bowed. "If given the time, I could bring her back, too! Please, Hokage-sama!"

"M-Me, too," Mayu whispered. "I can't let Sakura suffer because of an accident. She shouldn't be—I mean, even if the speculations point to her leaving the village, it's still obvious that Haruno-san wants and needs to be saved. I will strive to make her forgive me and bring her back as well." She finished with a bow.

Tsunade crossed her arms. Honestly, the young ninja had jumped the gun before she could give the second option, which was allowing Haruno Sakura to become a partial Missing-nin. Being partial meant that a ninja was still considered a traitor, but due to deliberation, an issue of them being killed on sight would not be handed out. The council did not view the kunoichi as much of a threat to label her with the full status of Missing-nin. Also, she was underage, too. Because of that, she would not be considered a true Missing-nin until her sixteenth birthday. The Fifth Hokage leaned back. She decided not to tell them. "Alright," she began her announcement. "Since there are still people who are devoted to her, she will not be declared as a rogue ninja. However, since Orochimaru will not kill her because of that mark, if she does not return, the village will view her as a traitor." She closed her eyes for a moment. "It will not be an official mission, but I am giving you permission to bring the girl in if sighted." Looks of relief crossed a couple of their faces. "Alright, you are dismissed."

0~0

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" The Third Hokage locked his hands behind his back as he stared at the window. "It's been a long time since you've been in this village. They have grown so much together, so it would be a pity. However, if you two think its best, there is nothing I can do." Sarutobi Hiruzen let out a sigh. He then turned his eyes to the two men in the room.

"It will be fine," one spoke. "In the end, this will benefit them all."

"Yes, it is essential that I teach the boy. I realize that now. Taking him out of the village would be in everyone's interest," said the other.

"I agree," Tsunade nodded her head. "I know for a fact that these two are good for them. Besides, it's not like they will not continue to grow without each other." With no objections, the Fifth continued. "It's settled then. Team 7 will temporarily disband. I will inform Hatake Kakashi upon his return to the village."

"Tomorrow is the day we will head out."

"The day after that is when I plan to leave with him."

"Agreed. Be sure to start training them right away. I will do the same."

0~0

Sasuke aimlessly stared up at the ceiling. It was one of those days where training wasn't a priory for the team. They still did some form of training, though. As of right now, the young Uchiha was waiting for his turn to come up. Naruto and Mayu were using their feet to try to knock the other down. The reason it was training was because hands and arms were used to stay balanced while the legs were in the air. This was to build upper body strength and flexibility, according to the kunoichi of the team. Because it sounded so ridiculous, the method was only used for when days got boring.

Overtime, they had all gotten better at staying balanced. So far, it had been thirty minutes, and neither one had fallen. But there was a lot of sweat on the floor below them. Finally, Mayu cheated and struck Naruto across the face using one of her hands. With a roll of his eyes, Sasuke sighed. His blond teammate was quick to complain once he stood straight. "No fair!" He had pushed the kunoichi over, causing her body to slam against the ground.

"It _was_ fair! You're a chuunin! As a genin, I should have an advantage when sparring with you!"

"That's stupid!"

The two actually butted heads.

"Now, now, you two," Sasuke intervened. "We've been rotating for awhile now. Let's take a break." Huffing, the two separated. The Uchiha rolled his eyes again. The funny thing was that they weren't even mad at each other. Pretty soon, they would be hanging all over each other as though they were the best of friends. "So what should we do now? Dinner is in a few hours, and I don't feel like wrestling with a cheater for an hour."

"HEY!"

"Kakashi-sensei's not back from his solo mission, right?" Naruto asked. He crossed his arms in a thinking position. "It's so boring nowadays! I wish Grandma would assign us a really cool mission."

"It can't be helped. The rookie squads were given vacation time after the chuunin exam. I image none of us will be getting missions until next week," Mayu glowered at the ground. She suddenly brightened a bit. "I know what we could do to pass the time!" Her teammates gave her dubious looks. "No, I wasn't going to say anything about magic cards, jeez… assholes." Skeptic glances were exchanged. "What I was _going_ to say was we can go to my house."

"Your house…?" Baffled, Naruto made a face. "Why would we go there?"

"I didn't mean my apartment, Naruto," Mayu muttered with a roll of her eyes.

"You mean the place you used to live?" Sasuke asked.

"Yeah… I've been putting it off for awhile now, so could you guys come with me?"

The two shinobi observed their teammate nervously scratch at her cheek. Sasuke recalled telling her to go long before hand. It probably wasn't a lie when she told them she had gone. However, she didn't give a time span. Naruto didn't know a lot about Mayu's family. But he did know they were meant to be a secret. His teammate had admitted that she would cover things up—thoughts, feelings, and actions—just because she was 'conditioned' to. And now, here she was, opening up to them. Naruto suddenly cracked a grin. "Alright," he said. "Let's go check out Ishikari!"

Mayu closed her eyes in a smile. A faint blush settled on her cheeks. She wasn't aware of it, but both Sasuke and Naruto exchanged a look. This look spoke volumes. Mayu was too cute. It had never been spoken out loud before, but they loved her as much as she loved them. This was only confirmation. "Well then, let's go!"

Within minutes, the team of three stood just beyond the single red shrine gate. Their eyes stared at the traditional Japanese home. For a moment, they stood there, waiting for the young Ishikari to make the first move. Mayu stepped forward, breathing out slowly as she did. Her walk was stiff, showing her hesitance. Still, she was determined to show her teammates everything. She trusted them. Her objective was for them to see—to have them discover at the same time she did. That is how much she trusted them. Sasuke and Naruto—they were everything to her. And she needed to convey how much she cared for them. They may not understand now, but in the future they would come to realize how truly significant this little trip was.

Her hand reached out, sliding the front door open. Her teammates followed close behind as she moved inside. They passed many rooms. Mayu's pace was fast, so only quick glances were given inside the rooms. Well, the few rooms that had been exposed due to the doors being open. Sasuke did notice that one of the rooms had no door. There was tape on the floor towards the back of the room. It was a circular shape. His dark eyes narrowed. He would have to check that room out later.

The kunoichi came to a stop. She slid the door back. "This was my parents' room," Mayu told them as she stepped inside. Naruto followed after her with Sasuke behind him. "When I came here before, I was looking for my mother's old clothes. I made a mistake and looked in this closet, forgetting that they were a present for me." The young Ishikari turned to face the two shinobi. "But I discovered a secret room. I wanted to explore, but it's extremely dark down there, so I opted to come back with light." She pulled items out of her weapon's pouch. "Which is why I nabbed these candles and matches from Sasuke's place." Sure enough, the symbol for Uchiha was on the box of matches. "Does everything you own have a crest on it?" Her answer was a bop to the head. "_Ow_! What the hell was that for?"

"You shouldn't steal, moron," he replied. He then took the matches from her.

"Hold on a sec!" Mayu nearly growled. She opened the closet door, and the dropped down. Her fingers lifted the floorboard and pushed it all the way back. She motioned her teammates in the closet and held out the two candle sticks. Sasuke scoffed, but lit a match anyway. He then lit the two candles. Mayu gave one of the candles to Naruto. "Okay…!" She breathed out. "I'm going first." She descended down the steps. "Keep close to me."

The three slowly moved down. As Mayu suspected, it was a spiraling path that led to the unknown. It was _cold_. Even now, she could hear Sasuke trying to force himself not to shiver. She, herself, was trembling. The team wasn't even underground yet, but it felt like this. She swallowed hard, hoping there weren't thousands of spiders at their destination. Her foot, finally, touched solid ground. Naruto and Sasuke stood beside her. It was a relatively small room, looking similar to the end of a small cave. Glancing around, she noticed a rectangular chest and a large paper like thing on the wall. There were characters on it.

Naruto stepped forward, trying to figure out what the heck it said—if they were even words. He scratched his head and held the fire near the paper. "Don't burn it, idiot," Sasuke warned. The blond ninja scowled, forcing himself not to lash out at his teammate. "Besides, you wouldn't be able to read it anyway."

"Like _you_ can!"

"Relax, you two," Mayu murmured. She moved forward as well, blue eyes focused on the wall. For her sake, Sasuke narrowed his eyes and shoved his hand, which was going to punch Naruto, into his pocket. "I'll read it for you."

_Una pequeña chispa podría ser la causa de los incendios silvestres._

_Ocultar en tiempo, crece la chispa._

_Métodos peligrosos son lo que buscaba._

_Libre de nuestros ojos, sufrimiento del niño conducirá a nuestra salvación. _

"Huh…?" Naruto could not understand what his teammate had just said. Mayu sighed lightly, and then turned to her teammates.

"It says 'A small spark could be the cause of wild fire. Hiding in time, the spark will grow. Dangerous methods are what he sought. Free from our eyes, the child's suffering will lead to our salvation.' I can't understand it, though." The kunoichi crossed her arms. "Is it a riddle?"

"I don't think so," Sasuke murmured. He stepped closer to the wall. "This… seems so familiar."

"_Eh_…?" His teammates' response made the young Uchiha sigh.

"I can't remember, but it… feels like… I'm connected to this."

"Wow, Sasuke, way to be pretentious."

Mayu was immediately whacked over the head. Tenderly rubbing the abused spot, she glared in his direction. "So what's it mean?" she asked. Sasuke only shrugged his shoulders. The kunoichi almost kicked his spine. However, there was something about the writing that caught her attention. _"There are two styles of handwriting…"_ She kept this thought to herself. It probably wasn't important anyway. "I'll think about it later," Mayu muttered out loud. Her gaze slid over to the chest. Naruto was already inching over there. As if feeling her gaze, the blond shinobi froze mid action of opening the top. "Naruto…" she scolded. He only laughed uneasily.

"What? You know I can't handle riddles!" he said in his defense. "I got bored!"

"Figures," Sasuke scoffed, walking over. He ignored the middle finger that Naruto showed him. "Well, open it up already."

"Yeah, let's see what's inside," Mayu agreed as she, too, made her way over. The blond shinobi nodded his head before refocusing on the chest. He lifted the lid and peered inside. The gasp that followed startled his fellow teammates. "What? What is it?" The kunoichi began tense. Sasuke did not say anything, but he became rigid as well. Naruto's hand went into the chest. Then that had shot up as he stood.

"_Dananana_~!" He held some kind of item up. His teammates could only stare at him for a few quiet seconds. Then Sasuke whacked him over the head.

"Idiot!" he nearly growled.

"Who do you think you are—_Link_?" Mayu, too, delivered a strike to her blond teammate's head. Scoffing, she snatched the object from Naruto's hand. "It's a book. Was it the only thing in there?"

"Yeah, but it looks too big to be a book, right?" Naruto muttered, rubbing his head. True, it was rather large for a reading book. Mayu shrugged, and then moved to sit on the top of the chest. Her teammates sat on either side of her. "Hurry up and open it!"

"Shut up!"

"_Uh_, who's wearing the sexy chuunin jacket?"

Sasuke and Mayu twitched at his question.

"Yeah, that's right—me, so you have to do what I _tell_ ya!"

Sighing, the kunoichi rolled her eyes. Since it was kinda a big deal to Naruto, she would let him slide for awhile. But if he decides to keep flaunting his status for another month, she was going to start smacking the crap out of him. Judging from the sour expression on Sasuke's face, he felt the same way. Putting those thoughts at the back of her mind for now, Mayu opened the old leather covered book. The first page had merely a title. "La Familia…" she murmured. Quickly, she gave a translation before her teammates could ask. _"It means family. I wonder if it's the same as what Yasmine slept on," _she thought with a frown. She turned the page. However, instead of some type of clan secret, there was a painted picture of her ancestor, Mitsuo. She recognized him instantly. It hadn't been that long since she had seen him in the mind of Yamanaka Ino. Only his face was drawn with ink.

"Who's this guy?" Naruto asked.

"Can't you tell by looking? He's obviously related to Mayu!"

"Yeah, he's the first Ishikari Master that resided in the Leaf," the kunoichi quickly confirmed before a verbal spar could break out between her teammates. "A very important figure in my clan's history." She clicked her tongue. "He suddenly disappeared, though."

"Disappeared?" Sasuke repeated.

"Yup. He wasn't married, and he didn't have any kids, so his sister became the clan head, Ishikari Mayuki," she explained. She turned the page. "See, this is her." Sure enough, the woman's name appeared under portrait. "This must be a portrait book of past clan leaders." The kunoichi flipped through the book until coming to a blank page. The last portrait had been of her mother—ink and colored paint had been used. Mayu smiled. Her mother was so beautiful. But too bad it wasn't the same book Yasmine had slept on. The young Ishikari was very interested in that. Perhaps it wasn't meant to be, though. She closed the book with a sigh.

"There a lot of cocoons in there when it came to female leaders," Sasuke mentioned.

"_Ah_, so you noticed that, huh?" Mayu tried to ignore the irritation that her teammate had just caused. "It's a tradition in my clan to name your first born daughter like that. I, myself, will name my daughter Mayumi. Cute, ne? The female were expected to know the name of their daughter at a young age if they chose to do the tradition. Ishikari Mayuki is the one that started it." Her eyebrow twitched. "And for the record, _ass clown_, my name is written to mean _full superiority_." The young Uchiha scoffed, as did Naruto.

"Don't we know it?" They had to nerve to say it in unison.

"Shut up!" The kunoichi abruptly stood up. "_Anyway_, I suppose I should take this back to my apartment." Her blue eyes looked down at the closed book of portraits. She grinned. "It's up to me to continue with a family of my own." Mayu turned to her teammates, only to discover scowls on their faces. "_Eh_… What's wrong?"

"Your own family, _huh_?" Naruto muttered. "That would be a husband, too?"

"Of course," Mayu answered confusion in her tone.

"Then, I won't accept him," Naruto bluntly replied.

"_Eh_…?"

"How about you just adopt?" Sasuke suggested, sharing Naruto's viewpoint. "Obviously, I won't accept a husband either." Mayu produced a flat expression.

"You've got to be kidding me."

"No," again, they spoke in unison.

"Listen, guys, your protectiveness is endearing, but not necessary," Mayu remarked. "Stop acting like we're seven years old. It sounds like you won't accept anyone besides yourselves!" Naruto and Sasuke looked at one another before turning their focus back to the kunoichi. "Oh no…" She recognized that look in their eyes. That look rarely showed, but when it did, it meant trouble for _her_. "I am getting married, and not to either of you!"

"That's the only way you're getting married."

"STOP TALKING IN SYNC, DAMNIT!" Mayu froze, surprised that it came out like that. She took a moment to compose herself. That damn Mother Nature must be coming to visit her again. "Anyway, it's not like I think of another guy at the moment. You two, and Kakashi-sensei, are the most important. And that won't change, so get over it." The young Ishikari clicked her tongue. "Now let's go. I'm getting hungry." She saw them about to open their mouths. "We're _not_ talking about this subject anymore. It's almost creepy at our ages, so let's just go!" She turned on her heel and began walking towards the steps. The ground underneath her foot… creaked? Mayu stepped back and looked down. "Did you guys hear that?" She didn't want for a response. Dropping down, her hand touched the dirt.

Her hand sank through the damp earth, fingertips touching wood underneath. Eyes widening, she brushed the dirt aside. Naruto and Sasuke appeared by her side and helped with the task. Once finished, a door was revealed. "Another level…?" Sasuke reached out and pulled the metal circular ring. He grunted a bit. It was heavier than it looked. "Hold this," he told Mayu. She nodded and took the candle from him. The young Uchiha proceeded to use both hands to pull. It wouldn't budge. Naruto was heard snickering. "Shut up…! It's obviously stuck!"

"Or maybe you're just a weakling?" The blonde's response feigned innocence.

"Say that to my face, you-"

"Maybe there's a lock," Mayu muttered. She scratched her cheek. Her foot moved, pushing back more dirt. There was nothing. And so she went around the door, pushing more dirt away. Finally, she revealed two rusty metal rectangular shapes connected to the door and the wooden floor, on either side of the door. "As I thought." The Ishikari tapped on the door. "Even though this is wood, it sounds like it's reinforced with some type of metal. There's no way anyone could break in." Her eyes suddenly widen. "I have a key! Yes!" She pushed the candle into Sasuke's hand, and then lifted the chain from her neck. The small black key glinted under the candlelight.

"Whoa…! Lucky!" Naruto cheered. Mayu nodded and dropped down to her knees. Focusing, she pushed the key in the slot. She tried turning it, but it would not unlock. "Huh? It's not working? Is it the wrong key?"

"No, it's definitely the key. It just won't turn." Mayu's eyes shifted towards the other lock. "No way… A double lock?" She sighed heavily. "My clan—they're so darn paranoid. Whatever's down there is most likely very valuable. Where am I going to get another key?"

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. He watched his female teammate scratch her scalp in frustration. She was ignoring Naruto's suggestion of picking the lock. His hand touched his pocket, groping the key and chain inside. The young Uchiha licked his lips and held back a grimace. It was now or never. He cleared his throat, which gained the attention of both his teammates. His hand reached into his pocket. "I… I've been holding back." Their eyebrows furrowed in confusion, and then they frowned.

"Yeah, we know," they stated. "When were you going to tell us about those gay bracelets, _huh_?" Sasuke found his eyebrow twitching.

"Not about that, morons!" he nearly growled. Irritated, he pulled his hand out of his pocket. The key and chain dangled from his clenched hand. "I have another key."

"What?" Mayu shouted, standing up. "Where did you get that?"

_You know, I saw Sasuke-kun staring at this thing. What? Do you have matching sets or something?_

"And _how long_ have you had it?" she continued once she remembered Ino's words. "Why haven't you said anything until now?"

The young Uchiha winced. "Can't we talk about this later?" he hesitantly asked. He was expecting this. His teammate did not like things being kept from her from her own teammates. It was no wonder she was so heated. Her snarl met that they were not going to talk about this later. _Now_—she wanted to talk about it now. Sasuke sighed heavily. Naruto decided to stay out of this one. "I found it… in that Akatsuki hideout right before I realized Naruto was taken. I… didn't have time to tell you."

"And all the times after that?" Her voice sounded a bit hurt. Sasuke frowned. "How come you didn't tell me? This is my family's-"

"Aren't _we_ your family, too?" He had gotten fed up. Startled, Mayu reared back. Sasuke groaned, pressing his palm to his covered forehead. His jaw moved from side to side. This was something he did when trying to restrain his intense emotions. Now, the kunoichi felt a bit bad for snapping like that. Once he composed himself, Sasuke continued. "I didn't want you distracted. The chuunin exam was coming up, so… I hid this from you, so you wouldn't be thinking unnecessary things."

"Why would-"

"I also found a picture of you—a younger you—with your parents. I assume that it was Itachi who had it."

A stifling silence fell upon the team.

"I… I see," Mayu finally murmured. "So you realize that-"

"That you still love him," Sasuke interrupted again. He breathed out slowly. "Yes, and I understand why, too." The kunoichi didn't respond. "Anyway, let's open it up. Didn't you say you were hungry?"

"Yeah," she grunted. "You get that side." She gestured to the left. The dark-haired shinobi nodded, and then got into position.

"On my mark," he said.

"_Excus_e me! It's _my_ clan! We do it on _my_ mark!"

Naruto rolled his eyes.

"Fine," Sasuke sighed.

"Okay…" Mayu turned her eyes to the lock, and then placed the key in. Her teammate did the same. Naruto stood ready to pull the door up. "Okay," she repeated. "1… 2…"

"Wait, wait, wait!" Naruto exclaimed. "Are we doing this on three or after?"

"When I say… Spider Slayer."

"You're an idiot."

"Shut up, Sasuke, and just do it." The kunoichi focused her attention back on the slot. "Now… Spider Slayer."

With a click, the two locks slid back. Naruto, with a grunt, lifted the door. There was not another staircase as Mayu had thought. The door simply led to a hole. In that hole was a cubed wooden box. Blinking, Sasuke reached in to grab it. "Wait, wait, wait!" Naruto suddenly shouted. Both his teammates looked towards him with anxious and confused expressions. "What if there's like a booty trap?"

"…"

"… I think you mean _booby_ trap, Naruto. Even if the real phrase isn't any better," Mayu finally broke the silence. "And don't worry. Setting traps isn't what Ishikari does." She turned to her irritated looking teammate. "Go ahead, Sasuke." He nodded again, and then picked up the box.

"It's… warm…" he murmured. Passing it to Mayu, Sasuke knitted his eyebrows. "It's been underground for who knows how long and it's warm?" Without warning, the kunoichi took the top off. Her eyes widen at the sight of a ring. It was a simple band, black in color; shiny, too. The small orb, which acted as the gem, seemed to be light and dark blue. The colors swirled together inside. "Is it a family heirloom?" Sasuke questioned. His teammate shrugged her shoulders.

"I've never seen it before… or heard about it either." The kunoichi held it close to her eye, examining its features. "It is warm," she agreed with a nod. "I should hold on to this." Mayu placed the ring back in the box. "It must be special in some way since it was hidden like this." She placed the box in her back pouch. Her eyes shifted to her teammates. "I think… I think we're done here."

0~0

Sasuke watched his teammates practically roar with laughter. They had just finished eating, and were now heading back to Naruto and Mayu's apartment complex. The two had been laughing about a 'That's what he said' joke since the team had left the restaurant. The young Uchiha found himself scoffing. Although it was pretty funny—it had been right on time—he didn't think it was _that_ funny. Perhaps a splash of alcohol had gone into his teammates' beverages? He shook his head. This was no time to be thinking about if his teammates were drunk or not.

Narrowing his eyes, Sasuke stared down at the ground. He was a few paces behind Naruto and Mayu. The day was almost over, and yet he still hadn't told them. Sighing inaudibly, his dark eyes shifted to their backs. Honestly, he felt trapped. It was never a good time to tell them. His teammates had been in such high spirits—even after that Ishikari trip—and the devastating news would surely crush them. Hell, he was feeling down when he, himself, finally came to the conclusion. Sasuke knew exactly how they would react. Maybe that's why he hadn't said anything.

He would have to say it soon, though. Time was running out. Leaving the team without any words was just wrong, but Sasuke felt as though he wouldn't have a choice. Again, he sighed, this time gaining the attention of Naruto and Mayu. They quieted their laughter and stopped. Both wore expressions of confusion. "What's wrong, Sasuke?" It was Mayu who asked. Her eyes widen a bit. "Oh, are you still hungry? I know Naruto kept swiping your food."

"Hey! It was you, _too_!"

"_I_ didn't do it because I'm greedy! _I_ did it for the sake of training!"

"You are such a liar!" Naruto exclaimed. His blue eyes turned in Sasuke's direction. "It must be something else, right?" As of late, his blond teammate had become better at observing. His skills are completely different from back in the Academy. Sasuke wouldn't be surprised if Naruto hadn't already figured out that he was holding important information out. "_Ah_, you're still jealous that I'm your sempai, right?" Sasuke found it extremely hard not to backhand his foolish teammate. That was last time he would try to compliment him. "Don't worry; I'll always call you kohai."

"Keep dreaming," Sasuke scoffed. He walked past his teammates. "It's nothing." It was like this every time he tried to mention it. The mood became so light that it felt as though talking about something as heavy as leaving the team would ruin the relationship between the three. _"I'm a coward,"_ he thought, briefly closing his eyes. _"A selfish coward."_ Before he could get very far, someone dropped down in front of his path. Sasuke blinked. "You…" he couldn't help but utter. It was surprising to see this old man in the village. "Pervy Sage."

"You little brat!" Jiraiya's eye twitched. "I said don't call me that in public!"

"Pervy Sage?" Both Naruto and Mayu shouted while pointing fingers. More twitching came from the toad Sanin. Either they didn't hear what the eccentric white-haired man said, or they chose to ignore him. "What are you doing here?" Naruto asked. He, and Mayu, came to stand by Sasuke's side.

Jiraiya sighed heavily. He didn't know why he even bothered with these brats. For a moment, he merely stared down at their curious faces. He smirked a bit. _Ah_, now he remembered. They were such a cute team. It was almost a shame that this had to happen. His smirk dropped. "Not just me," he said. With his head, he gestured behind the three. "Take a look behind you." As instructed, the three turned their heads.

"_AH_!" Naruto could not contain his shock. Neither could Mayu. She took a step forward, eyes wide and full of disbelief.

"Unc… Uncle Mori!" The kunoichi actually launched herself forward, wrapping her arms and legs around the older ninja. "What are you- How did you- I can't believe you're _here_!" Mayu pulled back a bit with a grin on her face. Morino smiled back at his niece, and then set her back on the ground. "You've come back."

"I've come back," he replied. "On a retrieval mission."

"_Eh_…?" Mayu murmured, confused.

"Mayu, I've come to take you from this village."

"… What?"

Jiraiya sighed. That Ishikari Morino—he was never one to beat around the bush when it came to serious matters, especially touchy subjects. His eyes shifted to the kunoichi. He couldn't see her expression. However, it must have been the same one as Naruto. "She isn't the only one leaving either." They turned to him. "I'm taking Naruto out, too."

"What? Why?"

"Yeah! Why all of a sudden?" Mayu looked back and forth between her uncle and the Sanin. "You want us to leave the village? Our home? My team?"

"Yes, your team—Hatake Kakashi's Team 7—will disband." Morino seemed to be heartless about breaking the news. "You are to pack your things. We will head out tomorrow morning."

"We will leave at a later date, Naruto," Jiraiya stated. "It will be a training journey. It will be one-on-one training, so don't get too upset."

"NO!"

"I can't just leave Sasuke and Naruto!" Mayu took a step away from her uncle. His serious face meant that he meant no foolery. "You act as if I don't have a say! What about what I want?" She slapped a hand to her chest.

"It has already been decided, Mayu." Morino continued, choosing to ignore his niece's expression. "I will take you and teach you in the way of Ishikari. You have no choice in the matter. It is your duty to learn as the last female and potential clan head of the Ishikari clan." Mayu took another step back. She shook head a few times.

"N-No… I can't leave them."

"Mayu, you must not go on being ignorant. You must leave them… for the sake of our clan!"

"…" Her hands clenched at her sides. "I… I refuse! Whatever you need to teach me, you can teach me in the village!" The kunoichi took off running. Naruto vehemently nodded his head, and then ran away his distressed teammate. He didn't want to leave his team either. Uncle or not, the older Ishikari didn't have the right to drag Mayu away from… from her new family.

"_Yeah, she's our family now,"_ Naruto thought.

"_Oi_, you didn't tell them yet?" Jiraiya asked the remaining younger ninja.

"No," Sasuke muttered. His eyes watched his departing teammates. "I guess I don't have a choice now, do I?" Showing his hands into his pockets, the young Uchiha followed the two. However, he went a slower place. He knew where Mayu was head. More than likely, she would seek refuge in home. Sasuke released another sigh. This was going to be a pain.

Upon arriving at his house, the young Uchiha noticed the door open. Naruto must not have closed it. Sasuke walked in, sliding the door close behind him. There were two pairs of shoes. At least they remembered to do that. Already, he could hear his teammates talking. He took off his own shoes and stepped up. As he thought, Naruto and Mayu were in the closest room to the front door. The blond noticed his presence immediately. "Can you believe that guy?" he shouted.

"Keep your voice down," Sasuke told him. His dark eyes moved over to his female teammate's form. She was sitting, staring down at the floor. "Mayu-"

"I love my uncle," she interrupted. "I missed my uncle," she continued. "But there is no way I can choose between him and you guys." Finally, the kunoichi looked up, eyes narrowed. "How can he expect me to drop everything just to leave this place?" Whether or not it was rhetorical, Sasuke did not answer. Mayu clicked her tongue, and then averted her eyes. "I've never been so angry with him before."

"Don't worry, Mayu. Me and Sasuke don't want you to leave either, so we're gonna back you up no matter what," Naruto proclaimed with a grin. The young Uchiha grimaced. "None of us want to separate, right, Sasuke?"

"That's right," he replied truthfully.

"See? We'll always be together, Mayu!"

"Naruto… Sasuke," she smiled. "Thank you."

Finally, the dark-haired shinobi couldn't take anymore. These false hopes they had—it needed to end. "Hey," he said, breaking the silence and catching his teammates' attention. "Let's… Let's stop this." Of course, this caused confusion. "You guys… are so naïve. It's no wonder I couldn't say this before—what needed to be said before."

"What? What are you talking about?" Naruto asked.

"You're not making sense, Sasuke." Mayu stood. Briefly, the Uchiha closed his eyes, trying to ignore the part of him that screamed that he shouldn't be doing this.

"Let me make it clear to you, then," Sasuke responded and took a few steps forward. "The childish games that we've played—they're over. We have to be serious from here on out."

"What?" Obviously, they still didn't understand. He sighed.

"I'm leaving the team," Sasuke clarified. Utter shock was written on their faces. "I have to—in order to get stronger. You two should do the same."

"B-But…!" Naruto rapidly shook his head. "We _are_ getting stronger! We've come so far _together_!"

"You're right. We have gotten stronger. But at this point, the only thing that will continue to grow stronger is our _bond_," Sasuke explained. "Physically, we need to be better than we are. And the only way that is going to happen is if we train separately."

"Why all of sudden?" Mayu shouted. "If that's how you felt, why haven't you said anything? We could change our training methods!"

"I'm saying it now," Sasuke calmly replied. "And it's not sudden. I've been thinking about this for awhile—since the chuunin exam." He shook his head. "There would be no point in changing our training system. I've already decided that this is what I'm going to do. I will train without you two. I have already asked the Hokage to remove me from this team."

"Sasuke…" For once, Naruto was speechless. The Uchiha turned his eyes away, feeling a bit guilty. However, he knew it would come to this. This needed to be done.

_Why have you come here, Uchiha?_

_To cut the small talk, I'll get to the point, Hokage-sama._

_And that would be…?_

_I want you to train me. I want to become your student._

… _I am surprised. Do you think you can gain my strength?_

_With all due respect, I don't give a damn about your power. _

_Oh?_

_What I want is your medical prowess. _

… _Why?_

_Because… they mean everything to me, and I can't lose them._

Tsunade seemed to know exactly who they were. She accepted him as her pupil without hesitation after that. Sasuke stared down at the floor. "It's not like its forever," he stated. "The time we're apart will only be three years. So you two have to go—pack, leave, and get stronger. I will remain in the village, but I will continue to get stronger, too. When we reunite, it will be a great surprise, don't you think? We can't think like kids anymore, only looking at the present. We have to look towards the future and act accordingly."

"Three years…? So you already knew?" Mayu asked. "You really had all this planned out?"

"Yes," Sasuke answered. Actually, he didn't know about Ishikari Morino coming back to take Mayu. He had thought only Naruto would leave the village, and Kakashi would train Mayu. It was unexpected, but it still fit in.

"So there's no way you're changing your mind?" Naruto questioned, squeezing his eyes shut. His hands were balled into fists. "After all we've been through, _this_ is how you're leaving us?"

"Naruto, Mayu—you know I don't want to leave you," he said. He turned his eyes back his teammates. "More than anything, I want us to stay together just to know you're there. However, because of my fear, I have to let go. I have to let you guys go." A humorless chuckle came from the kunoichi.

"I see," she said. "I understand now. You've been thinking about this since the chuunin exam, so it must be because of whatever Haruno showed you in that genjutsu." Sasuke didn't answer. He didn't need to. "Sasuke…" Mayu covered eyes with one hand. "You've become such a cute guy." She walked forward, going around her teammate. "I get it now, so I will follow your wishes." Once she was at the door, her hand dropped. "I will leave tomorrow with my uncle." Sasuke only turned his head. "See… you guys." Her voice had cracked.

Once he heard the front door close, the Uchiha turned to Naruto. "This isn't bad," he said. "Please understand why-" Without warning, the newly appointed chuunin wrapped his arms around Sasuke's body. Startled, his eyes expanded. He had not been expecting this. "Na-Naruto…?" The blond seemed to ignore him, and only squeezed a little bit tighter. After a moment or two, Sasuke relaxed. Naruto was just as upset as Mayu. He knew this already.

"I hate you," he nearly growled. "I hate you," he repeated; this time, in a much softer tone. "But I love you… doing these stupid things."

"I know. I'm sorry." Almost awkwardly, he returned the embrace. "But you know I'm right now, don't you, Naruto? Being a chuunin and all."

"Shut up." His voice cracked, too.

0~0

It was a bright day. The sun's rays lit up the morning sky. However, there were those who rose before the sun. Ninja of all ages started their day before the day began. Hyuga Hinata and Yamanaka Ino were not an exception. The two girls had come together frequently to train. The blond kunoichi sighed out after drinking a bit of water. "Wow, Hinata, you've gotten so good." Her blue eyes shifted to her sparring partner.

"Yes, you have gotten better as well, Ino," the kunoichi nodded her head with a smile.

"Yeah, pretty soon, I'm sure I won't need a medium for my swords!" She grinned. Hinata's eyes looked up at the sky. The smile dropped. Ino noticed. "_Eh_, what's the matter, Hinata?" The Hyuga heir breathed in before replying.

"I heard from Neji that… Mayu-san is leaving the village. She will be gone for years," she murmured. Ino frowned, yet said nothing. From her position on the ground, Hinata plunked a few blades of grass. "Do you think we should see her off?"

"… No," Ino finally said. She averted her eyes to the ground. "As we are right now, I don't we can show ourselves in front of her." Hinata solemnly nodded her head in agreement. "Besides, Sasuke-kun probably won't let us anywhere near her." A wry grin appeared. "I guess that means we have to spend a lot of time buttering him up, _ne_?"

"_Ne_," Hinata chuckled a bit. The Hyuga stood up. "We should get back to training."

"Yeah," Ino muttered, dropping her water bottle. Her eyes looked towards the sky as well. An image of both Sakura and Mayu emerged in her mind. _"I have to get stronger, too,"_ she thought.

0~0

"What's wrong with you?" Hyuga Neji didn't even crack an eye open. His question, though, was directed at his friend. "We're supposed to be meditating, and yet your mind is full. Your sighs are beginning to break my concentration." Again, a sigh reached his ears. He opened his eyes, eyebrow raised. Across from him, in the same lotus position, was the one of the foreigners of the Leaf village. She was in the middle of rubbing her neck and moving her shoulders.

"Sorry, Neji… Mayu kept me up all night." Yasmine unfolded her legs and stretched out. "She cried and used me as a pillow, so I fell asleep in an uncomfortable position."

"_Ah_, she really is broken up about leaving her teammates behind," Neji stated, rather than asked. Still, Yasmine nodded her head. "And what about you?" Her browned eyes held confusion. "Mayu-san is leaving. Doesn't that make you upset?"

"Yes, it does, but there's a method to the madness. She's going to train hard, so I have to do the same." She grinned. "Besides, I'm not alone. And I'm going to be so busy. I probably won't miss her at all!"

"That's right. You start learning the ways of the ninja next week," Neji said. He smirked a bit. "You must be happy to be learning at the same level as mere children." Yasmine's eye twitched.

_**Hur! Hur! Hur**_**! Laugh it up, pretty boy!**

Yasmine snickered. "We'll see who's making sarcastic comments when I learn the basics, Neji Meji," she remarked. "Surely I'll become stronger once I know how to utilize my chakra."

"_Hm_… Indeed we will."

0~0

Tayuya stared out of the hospital window. A flock of birds flew past and chirped. This only caused the kunoichi to scoff and turn her eyes away. She couldn't believe she was still in this place. Clearly, she was all healed up. However, the doctors wanted to check her general psyche, saying that it was a traumatic experience. The former Sound kunoichi scoffed lightly, gaining the attention of her teammate. "What's wrong now?" Kin asked.

"I just wanna get the fuck out of here already," Tayuya growled.

"_Hah_, you're probably embarrassed because your doctor walked in while you were crying." This comment caused the bedridden kunoichi to blanch. Admittedly, that was part of the reason. "Anyway, it's not like we have anything better to do." Kin crossed her legs and rested them against her teammate's hospital bed. "Like I said before, that woman came to me last night and told me that the Hokage fired her as our sensei. Hokage-sama doesn't know _what_ to do with us yet." The kunoichi shrugged. "So rest up and clear your head. Once you're released we can do some much needed… _bonding_ as Kiba says."

"Whatever…!" The redhead sharply turned her head away.

"Tayu-chan~!" Tayuya cringed at the nickname. Slowly, her brown eyes turned to the open door. With a giant grin, Tenten stepped in. In her hand was a fruit basket. "I heard you were here, so I brought goodies." She closed the door before she walked over. "I hope you like bananas."

"I fucking _hate_ them!"

"That's okay. I've got apples and grapes, too." The weapon specialist seemed to downright ignore the tone coming from the irate kunoichi. Kin only chuckled. "Haruno Sakura left, huh? You guys are short one member." The two chose not to speak. Tenten paid no mind. "I guess that means you two will be working with other teams on missions."

"_Huh_…?" Tayuya could not hold back. "I have to spend more fucking time with the fools of this fucking shithole of a village?"

"_Uh_, yeah… That's how it works," Tenten supplied. She began to peel an apple. With her quick hands, it was finished in no time at all. "And I don't appreciate you lumping me in with 'the fools,' Tayu-chan." She cut the apple into slices. "Now, say _ahhh_!"

Kin had to restrain her teammate from throttling.

0~0

Sweeping the floor of his workplace was tedious but necessary. His host no longer did any of the labor around the shop anymore. It was up to him. Since he did not sleep, he usually did the work before the flower shop opened. Ino's mother would not come to the shop until opening. Ino, herself, would not come to the shop until the afternoon. Gaara was left to pick up the slack.

Taking a pause, he surveyed the handiwork. Satisfied, Gaara reached down to grab the dustpan. That is when he felt a presence behind him. "_Ah_, so this is where you were?" A familiar voice reached his ears. "Gaara-kun." The redhead turned to be greeted by the sight of his smirking host. He was the family head.

"Inoichi-san," Gaara greeted with a nod. He walked over to the trashcan and dumped the dustpan. Then he set the broom against the wall. "You're back from your mission?"

"Yes. It was unexpectedly easy." The man crossed his arms and leaned back against the counter. "Gaara-kun, I am here to tell you that your punishment is over." The former Sand shinobi blinked. Inoichi almost smirked as he pulled out a stack of papers out of his desk. "Once you fill out these documents, stating that you a civilian of the Leaf village, you are free to go. You may live anywhere that accepts you. I know a few apartments that are low on tenants. Also, registration to become a ninja is at the bottom of the stack." Gaara didn't move. He blinked once more. "Is there… something you're confused about, Gaara-kun?"

"No," he said simply. "As it goes… I no longer wish to be a ninja." Inoichi's eyes widened. His outstretched arm dropped to his side. His fingers gripped papers. "I have grown accustomed to—and fond of—this peaceful life. I do not think I will be able to delve into the life of killing and still remain as stable as I am now. Of course, I still plan on becoming stronger in order to protect the ones I care for, but to be a ninja again… I do not want it."

"I see."

"And if you can accept my existence, I would like to remain here with your family," Gaara requested, bowing his head. The jounin walked forward and placed a hand on the boy's shoulder. Sea green eyes hesitantly looked up. "Inoichi-san…"

"It goes without saying, Gaara-kun! Of course you can still live with us!" The man grinned. "I imagine my wife would be quite upset with me if I refused. You're a part of this family now." For a moment, the redhead stared, eyes expanded. Clearly, he was stunned by the remark. "_Eh_, Gaara-kun…?" The boy seemed to snap out of his daze. And then for the first time since Inoichi had known him, Gaara smiled. Small, but definitely noticeable. His fingers twitched. _"Crap,"_ he thought. His fingers twitched again. _"I'm turning into my wife…"_

He had felt an outrageous urge to hug the boy.

0~0

Mayu breathed deeply before knocking on her teammate's door. She fiddled with her bag strap as she waited for Naruto to answer. As she thought, sleep was impossible. Surely, her cheeks and eyes were swollen. The kunoichi sighed out. She hadn't wanted her teammates to see her so distressed, and so she ran home. Luckily, Yasmine was there to comfort her. Even if she fell asleep half way through. Still, her friend understood, and did not question or judge. The young Ishikari rubbed at her face in an effort to remove the evidence of her tears. She could do little to hide the bags under her eyes, though. The young Ishikari sighed again and shifted her wait.

"What's taking him so long?" She knocked on the door again. After a few moments with no response, Mayu knocked louder. Still, she was greeted by silence. Her hand tightly grasped the bag strap. "Naruto… Where are you?"

She realized that she left in quite of hurry, without looking at her teammates, but Naruto should have came back. Mayu was about to knock—or rather bang on the door—again, but she froze before her fist struck. What if… the separation was too painful for him? What if seeing each other right now would cause more harm than good? With that thought in her mind, the young Ishikari let her arm fall. Slowly, she backed away from Naruto's apartment. "Maybe," she muttered. "Maybe it's better this way." She turned and began walking. _"Even though I really wanted to say goodbye."_

Leaving so abruptly and early like this—her uncle was so unpredictable. However, Yasmine was right. She should listen to her last relative. He knew what was best for the future of the clan. She would have to learn from him. Sasuke was right, too. Logically speaking, he was right in his assessment of the team. Sure, they would grow if they stayed together, but not in strength. At the moment, the team had reached its peak. To get stronger, separating—for just awhile—was necessary. Mayu clenched her fist. "This must be done," she said. "Fighting…!"

Her shoulder eventually hunched over, though. She would miss them like crazy. That was a given. When had it come to this? She had been so independent before becoming a part of Team 7. It was a mistake that was never meant to happen, and yet she had found herself completely embracing her predicament. Naruto… Sasuke… They had become so important to her. They were no longer characters that were a part of a fictional world. They had become something much more than that.

_Haruno, Ishikari… Sakura-chan, Mayu… It doesn't matter what you call yourself!_

_Selfish or not, I'm not willing to give either you up either. _

Mayu found herself chuckling. Obviously, those two felt the same for her. _"From comrades, to teammates, to friends, to family…" _The smile lingered on her face as she recalled the memories she had with Team 7. Even the smallest event—of little significance—went through her mind _"How is it that after all this time… I still feel so lucky and selfish all at the same time?"_ The kunoichi chuckled again. She knew the reason. Lucky to have gotten the chance to be Haruno Sakura. Selfish because she hadn't—doesn't—want to leave the team and bond that had been forged. But now where was her team? _"Is it so wrong for me to want to see their faces?"_

The young Ishikari planted her feet. Up ahead was the entrance to the Leaf village. She could make out her uncle's figure, leaning against the giant gate. So this was it, _huh_? Mayu turned around, staring back at the town. At this hour, not many people were up. At least not anyone she wanted to see. Her eyelids lowered a bit. _"That's right… It's better if we don't say goodbye. Then it could be like-" _She forced herself to smile. "-We didn't separate at all."

"Oi…! Talking to yourself now?" Mayu gasped at the familiar voice. It could only belong to one person. Still, she was frozen in place. "You're so emotional, Mayu."

"Like _you're_ one to talk, dobe."

"Shut up, Sasuke! I was trying to be cool!"

"The day you succeed in being cool is the day some guy comes up with a ridiculous world peace plan involving the moon."

"You guys…!" Mayu turned around, smiling brightly. Standing there were her teammates. "You're here!"

"Of course we're here. As if we wouldn't see you off!" Naruto exclaimed.

"Yeah, I guess it was pretty stupid of me to think that you wouldn't show up." Mayu scratched her cheek, embarrassed. "Uh, did you sleep over at Sasuke's? I tried knocking earlier."

"He did. He was an emotional wreck, so I couldn't let him go home alone."

"SHUT _UP_, SASUKE!"

Mayu's snickers turned into flew blown laughter. She laughed so hard that tears spilled. And then they realized, their teammate was actually crying out. Never before had they seen the usually strong kunoichi breakdown like this. Her cries seemed to reach the skies above. "_Waaaaaahhhhh_!" Her mouth pointed up. "Why do I have to leave now? Why can't I stay a little longer! Why are my teammates so good to me? Why am I so selfish? _WAAAAAAAH_!" Honestly, it was a bit difficult to understand what she was trying to say. Awkwardly, the two shinobi stood there, not sure of what to do to quell the crying.

Finally, Sasuke got fed up. After all, she was attracting the attention of any and all of the people who were up. She probably woke up a lot of people, too. Scoffing, the Uchiha grabbed her wrist and pulled her forward. His hand grabbed the back of her head, causing her forehead to collide with the side of his neck. "You're noisy," Sasuke told her. Now, Mayu only sniffled. "Calm down. This isn't forever. Honestly, you've got to stop getting worked up." His hand dropped. Sasuke stood back. "This is the last time you cry like this. Understand?"

"I… I understand," Mayu wailed. She wiped her face with the back of her palm. "Sorry, sorry." Her voice had calmed significantly. "I can barely control myself during this time." Sasuke rolled his eyes, but Naruto only looked befuddled. Before the blond could ask, and turn this into an awkward conversation, the Uchiha pulled a box from his pocket.

"Here," he said, tossing it. "A going away present." Mayu hastily, lifted the lid. Inside, there were four identical silver bracelets. "These are the same as mine. I already gave Naruto his set." The chuunin of the team raised his arm, showing off the bracelet on his wrist. "This way, no matter what the distance, all of us are still connected." Sasuke suddenly grimaced. "I didn't say that so you would start _crying_ again!"

Quickly, the kunoichi squeezed her eyes shut. "I'm not crying," she muttered. She sniffled again, but there was still snot running down. Sasuke shook his head. Naruto patted Mayu's shoulder. "Thanks… both of you." The young Ishikari slipped two of the bracelets onto her wrist, deciding to put the other two on once she was out of the village. She tucked the box into her pocket. "This really means a lot." Without any type of warning, Mayu reached out and pulled both of them forward by grabbing their shoulders. Her lips touched their cheeks. Naruto first, Sasuke second.

Stunned into silence, only their bottom lips dropped. The kunoichi snickered, and then moved pass them. After a few moments, their paralyzed bodies finally moved. "You… You're blushing," Naruto stated as he turned to watch his teammate go.

"You're one to talk," Sasuke retorted as he did the same. Reality had finally set in. It was bittersweet in a way. This would be the last time they would all be together. They would be a part for _three years_. Simultaneously, the shinobi released sighs. Suddenly, the kunoichi of the team turned around. Naruto and Sasuke stared back at her, slightly perplexed. Mayu broke out into a huge grin.

"NARUTO! SASUKE!" Her suddenly scream caused their ears to ring. She pounded her chest twice, and then raised her hand, showing her rock fist. The blond shinobi grinned in response. _"Until we meet again…"_ she thought.

"Thug ninja," he murmured, patting his chest.

"For life," Sasuke finished, raising his hand. The two showed off their rock fists for Mayu to see. Her smile was the last thing they saw before she turned away. The kunoichi dashed towards the gate, towards her uncle, and towards her journey. Naruto and Sasuke dropped their arms. They watched her back until it was no longer visible. "Three years already seems like such a long time."

"Yeah," Naruto agreed. "Are you gonna be alright without our guidance, Sasuke-chan?" Ignoring his sarcasm, the Uchiha turned, heading back into town. "Hey…!" The blond took off after him. Still, he couldn't help but grin. _"Until we meet again,"_ he thought.

"I think I can handle it," Sasuke commented once Naruto caught up. His dark eyes looked towards sky. _"Until we meet again,"_ he thought.

Goodbye…

0~0

Completed May 6, 2011

Pages: 29

Words: 13, 082

Time: 6:55 PM

That's right, people. Three years in the making, and this story has finally reached its conclusion. I'd like to thank everyone who stuck around and patiently waited for each and every chapter. I heard that butts go numb when reading this. I'm sorry, but thank you for reading these long chapters I dish out. I especially like to thank those who commented and gave constructive criticism. Although it might not be obvious, it did help and made me better. All of us have come far from the first chapter.

Again, none of the characters mentioned in this story belongs to me, except for Ino's ancestor, Inoue. The plot of the story, though, belongs to me. So I better not catch a plot just like this without my permission! _Heh_, anyway…

You must notice that I ended things before the time skip of the canon version, right? Well, that is because I am putting things in your hands, dear reviewers. **You** get to decide if a sequel happens or not. If you don't want the sequel, that's fine. However, should you choose to encourage me to write the sequel, I will do it. Also, you get to choose what the title of the next story will be. Seriously, I can't do it. The titles that I came up with—if there is a sequel—I can't choose between them myself, so it would be great if you guys and vote on it.

_Team 7: Evolution_ or _Team 7: Legends_

Both titles are awesome, so I can go either way.

I'm looking forward to seeing how you all thought of this story as a whole.


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